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The latest poll by the National Alliance for Mental Illness finds that 1 in 5 American adults rate their mental health as poor, and a majority of them are opposed to cuts to federal jobs and to federal funding for programs addressing mental health, substance use and suicide prevention. NPR's Rhitu Chatterjee reports.
RHITU CHATTERJEE, BYLINE: The NAMI/Ipsos poll asked more than 2,000 adults across the country about their own mental health, as well as the state of mental health care in the country. Hannah Wesolowski is chief advocacy officer at NAMI.
HANNAH WESOLOWSKI: If you think about it, 1 in 5 saying their mental health is poor right now is deeply concerning.
CHATTERJEE: She says respondents identified a range of factors affecting their well-being.
WESOLOWSKI: Being a caregiver is really taking a drain on people's mental health. Financial uncertainty, the state of the world - so all of these things are really taking a toll.
CHATTERJEE: The poll also asked respondents about their thoughts on whether lawmakers are doing enough to address mental health needs in the country.
WESOLOWSKI: Nearly 2 in 3 Americans say that they don't think Congress is doing enough about mental health. They also say they're dedicating too little resources to mental health care.
CHATTERJEE: She points out the cuts to the country's main federal mental health agency, which has lost nearly half of its 900 employees this year due to the Trump administration's efforts to cut federal spending. But nearly three-quarters of poll respondents are opposed to such cuts to federal staffing and programs for mental health, substance use and suicide prevention, like the 988 Lifeline.
WESOLOWSKI: It is hard to find an issue where Americans agree strongly. But we see again and again in these polls that Americans think that mental health, suicide prevention, 988 should be among the highest priorities for Congress in terms of dedicating federal funding.
CHATTERJEE: The poll's results aren't surprising, says psychologist Benjamin Miller.
BENJAMIN MILLER: What we saw in those data from the survey is what a lot of people have been saying for years.
CHATTERJEE: Miller, an adjunct at Stanford University, wasn't involved in the new poll. He says people in communities across the country have been struggling to access mental health care for themselves and their loved ones.
MILLER: It's frustrating, it's expensive and it's often not what you want when you want it. So people see this brokenness and they don't believe that our leaders are seriously thinking about fixing it.
CHATTERJEE: He says the cuts to Medicaid passed in President Trump's budget bill and higher health insurance costs will only worsen access to care for mental health and substance use.
Rhitu Chatterjee, NPR News.
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