- People with severe mental illness have a higher risk of COVID-19, but are unlikely to have priority to receive the coronavirus vaccine.
- People diagnosed with attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, or schizophrenia are much more likely to get the new coronavirus than people without severe mental illness.
- Experts say these groups should be given priority for a COVID-19 vaccine.
People with severe mental illness such as schizophrenia and major depressive disorder have a higher risk of contracting the new coronavirus and dying from COVID-19.
However, in most countries, this risk population is not prioritized to receive the COVID-19 vaccine.
“Society must give priority to risk groups, but it is distressing to see that even during the pandemic, mental health is a later reflection (if so) for many countries,” said Hilkka Kärkkäinen, president of the Alliance. World Mental Illness Defense Network. Europe (GAMIAN-Europe) said in a press release.
“The scientific evidence is clear that COVID, and the resulting blockade, is causing significant harm to people with serious mental health problems, but few countries are dealing with it. That needs to change.”
In a new study, Kärkkäinen and colleagues examined 20 European countries to see how they prioritized risk groups for COVID-19 vaccination.
They found that only Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom recognized serious mental illness as a high-risk medical condition that allows people to be vaccinated sooner.
Their results were published in the journal on 17 February
This is a painful statistic that is reflected in the United States.
Only a few states, such as New Jersey and Ohio, include people with severe mental illness in the early stages of the COVID-19 vaccine. And they were limited to patients hospitalized in psychiatric hospitals.
While many
Recent research shows that people diagnosed with attention deficit / hyperactivity disorder, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, or schizophrenia are much more likely to get the new coronavirus than people without severe mental illness.
Researchers think this may be due to the fact that people with severe mental illness are more likely to work in unsafe environments, to live in mass mass environments or to the homeless, factors that increase their chances of acquiring virus.
Serious mental illness also increases the risk of dying from COVID-19.
One
A more recent study in
The study authors wrote that people with schizophrenia may have differences in their immune system that predispose them to severe COVID-19.
Or medications used to treat schizophrenia may make COVID-19 worse.
Further research would be needed to determine whether these factors played a role in patient outcomes.
Dr. Benjamin Druss, professor and chair of mental health Rosalynn Carter of the Rollins School of Public Health at Emory University in Georgia, says the New York City study suggests that serious mental illness may increase the risk of a person beyond these other factors.
“People with serious mental illness are at high risk [for COVID-19] due to comorbidities, “he said,” and may have an even greater risk than these comorbidities, as this article suggests. “
But there are other reasons to prioritize this group for the COVID-19 vaccine.
“People with severe mental illness are also at risk of not getting the vaccine even when they are eligible,” Druss said. He says this is due to “several reasons,” such as higher homelessness rates and not having regular sources of primary health care.
He thinks that designating this group as a high-risk population should go hand in hand with the allocation of vaccine doses to facilities where people with severe mental illness receive services or medical care, such as group homes. , shelters for the homeless, community mental health centers and psychiatric services hospitals.
Having a one-dose vaccine approved could help reach that population, as people receiving care or services at these sites may not return for a second dose.
“Now, with the Johnson & Johnson vaccine on the horizon, which only requires a single dose, it makes even more sense to expand the range of sites that offer vaccines to include various types of public mental health facilities,” he said.
While most states do not prioritize people with severe mental illness for the COVID-19 vaccine, people may be included in another priority category based on their age or other medical conditions.
To find out if you or someone is eligible to receive the COVID-19 vaccine in your state, check with your state or local health department.