Urges Surgeon General to Hold States Accountable for Americans
Languishing with Untreated Brain Disorders

Suicide is the number one cause of premature death among people with untreated schizophrenia, with an estimated 10 percent to 13 percent killing themselves. Suicide is even more pervasive in individuals with untreated manic-depressive illness, with 15 percent to 17 percent taking their own lives. The extreme depression and psychoses that result due to lack of treatment are the usual causes of suicide. These suicide rates can be compared to the general population, which is somewhere around one percent.

Some 30 years ago, civil libertarians forced a national agenda that prohibits treatment of individuals with brain disorders until they present an imminent danger to themselves or others. It was a purely ideological campaign based on the premise that the right to refuse treatment is paramount, regardless of its consequences.

As a result, state laws prevent us from treating people with severe mental illness before it is too late -- too often the inevitable consequence is suicide.

Appropriate medical intervention could prevent such senseless deaths. Advanced medications are allowing millions to reclaim full, productive lives. And, repeated scientific studies have shown that early intervention increases an individual's chances for long term recovery.

Many individuals who refuse treatment lack the capacity to make informed treatment decisions due to their illness. Approximately half of individuals with these illnesses suffer from symptoms that impair their self-awareness. They do not recognize that they are ill, and therefore refuse treatment. But, treatment can alleviate the other symptoms of these illnesses that too often lead an individual to commit suicide before we are allowed to intervene.

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