April 11-17, 2025 is Black Maternal Health Week. Current proposed cuts to Medicaid and DEI programs threaten to diminish the physical and mental health of Black women.
By Alisha Saxena and Isha Weerasinghe While May is Mental Health Awareness Month, May 5-11 was also Maternal Mental Health Appreciation Week. The United States has the highest maternal mortality rate of any high-income country. Using data from Maternal Mortality Review Committees from 2017-2019, the…
Young people of color experiencing poverty have noted how racism and discrimination are root causes and key traumas that adversely impact their mental health.
By NADA HASSANEIN, Stateline EXCERPT: “They need to be offered [mental health care] in a way that a birthing person doesn’t have to scramble to find those services,” said Isha Weerasinghe, a senior mental health policy analyst at the Center for Law and Social Policy,…
CLASP senior policy analyst Isha Weerasinghe wrote an op-ed about how casual use of terms can be stigmatizing and dehumanizing for people with mental health conditions.
By Isha Weerasinghe The stories of immigrants take on many forms, often carrying resilience and hope. My story, and my parents’ second immigration journey, began in the early 80s with a move from the United Kingdom to the United States. My parents moved to the…
Young people from underserved communities—namely people with Black, brown, disabled, and/or LGBTQ+ identities—prefer community-based programs and peer networks over formal mental health services delivered in clinical settings.