My son Aaron was 19 years old when he died. His death certificate says the cause of death was asphyxia. The actual cause was meth addiction and mental illness.

There was more to Aaron than that, just as there is more to so many like him. As a new report from the California Health Care Foundation shows, there is also much more we could be doing to help people who live with both mental illness and substance use disorder.

It’s not just a California problem or an American challenge. Throughout the world, far too many people have suffered because they were treated primarily for one diagnosis rather than for their intertwined conditions. Integrated care is hard to achieve, but a few states — including California — are pursuing promising approaches.

Continue reading the full post at the Los Angeles Times website.

Katherine Haynes

Katherine Haynes is a senior program officer in CHCF’s People-Centered Care team, which works to ensure that Californians — particularly those enrolled in Medi-Cal — receive responsive, comprehensive, and coordinated care that supports their health and well-being. She uses research, strategy and organizational design, futurism, and design thinking to create scalable, sustainable programs. Read More

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