Trends in US State Public Health Emergency Laws, 2021-2022.

Objectives. To identify and categorize US state legislation introduced between January 1, 2021, and May 20, 2022, that addresses emergency health authority. Methods. We adapted standard policy surveillance methods to collect and code state bills and enacted laws limiting or expanding the emergency public health authority of state and local officials and agencies. Results. State legislators introduced 1531 bills addressing public health authority; 191 of those were enacted in 43 states and the District of Columbia, including 17 expanding and 65 contracting emergency authority, 163 regulating use, and 30 preempting local use of specific measures such as mask mandates. Conclusions. State laws setting the scope and limits of emergency authority are crucial to effective public health response. These laws are changing in ways that threaten to reduce response capacity. Tracking changes in health law infrastructure is important for evaluating changes in health authority and ensuring that stakeholders recognize these changes. Public Health Implications. The COVID-19 pandemic called for quick, decisive action to limit infections, and when the next outbreak hits, new laws limiting health authority will make such action even more difficult. (Am J Public Health. 2023;113(3):288-296. https://doi.org/10.2105/10.2105/AJPH.2022.307214).

Alignment of Supplementary Aids and Services With Student Needs and Placement.

Trends in the supplementary aids and services (SAS) written in individualized education programs (IEPs) for students with significant disabilities (a) in different educational placements, (b) with and without behavior support plans (BSP), and (c) with and without complex communication needs (CCN) are examined using multivariate analysis of variance. Results show no significant differences in SAS for students across separate, resource, and inclusive placements. Students with BSPs had significantly more collaborative and behavior SAS than those without BSPs. Students with CCN had significantly more social-communication SAS than those whose IEPs indicated little to no communication support needs; however, 51.1% of students with CCN had no social-communication SAS. Findings raise concern around the extent to which SAS are considered before placement decisions, the high frequency of paraprofessional support for students with BSPs, and the low frequency of social-communication SAS written for students with CCN. Implications for policy, practice, and future research are provided.

Mapping Housing Laws in the United States: A Resource for Evaluating Housing Policies' Impacts on Health.

CONTEXT: Safe, stable housing is essential to good health. Housing hazards, including mold, vermin, and lead, can contribute to the development or exacerbation of chronic illnesses such as asthma and neurological disorders. In addition, eviction has been associated with poor physical and mental health outcomes. There are many laws aimed at maintaining healthy housing, or protecting access to stable housing, but their impacts are mostly unknown. POLICY: Using scientific legal mapping, the Center for Public Health Law Research (the Center) created legal data sets on state landlord-tenant laws, state fair housing laws, and city nuisance property ordinances. These data sets track the incidence and key features of these laws, creating legal data that can be used for evaluation. Some important elements of these laws include property maintenance duties; protections against retaliation; protected classes under state fair housing laws; discriminatory acts prohibited by state fair housing laws; types of conduct that constitute nuisance activity; and required nuisance abatement actions. IMPLEMENTATION AND/OR DISSEMINATION: As of August 1, 2017, all 50 states and the District of Columbia have a state landlord-tenant law; all states except Mississippi have a state fair housing law; and 37 of the 40 most populous US cities have a local nuisance property ordinance. EVALUATION: Evaluation of these laws is needed to determine their effectiveness and impacts and to spread the use of evidence-based policies. The creation of these legal data sets is the first step toward evaluation. DISCUSSION: Law can play an important role in promoting healthy housing, but evaluating the law is essential to determining its impact. Tracking the prevalence and key elements of laws is an important first step in conducting evaluation. The legal data created by the Center can be used to evaluate the efficacy and impacts of state landlord-tenant laws, state fair housing protections, and city nuisance property ordinances.

A Description of Parent Input in IEP Development Through Analysis IEP Documents.

Parent input in individualized education program (IEP) development is the clear expectation in U.S. education law. Every IEP team must include parents, and their input must be equally considered when developing IEPs. The present study used content analysis of 88 IEPs of students with intellectual and developmental disabilities to explore team membership, concerns parents raised during IEP meetings, and evidence that parent concerns and priorities are reflected in IEP goals and supplementary aids and services. Findings reveal that although parents express a range of concerns and priorities, these are translated into goals or services only two thirds of the time. We provide implications of these findings for research and practice.

Impact of a structured, group-based running programme on clinical, cognitive and social function in youth and adults with complex mood disorders: a 12-week pilot study.

BACKGROUND: Individuals with mood disorders often report lingering health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and social and cognitive impairments even after mood symptoms have improved. Exercise programmes improve mood symptoms in patients, but whether exercise improves functional outcomes in patients with difficult-to-treat mood disorders remains unknown. DESIGN: We evaluated the impact of a 12-week structured running programme on cognitive, social and quality-of-life outcomes in participants with difficult-to-treat mood disorders. METHODS: In a prospective, open-label study, patients referred to the St Joseph's Healthcare Hamilton Team Unbreakable running programme for youth and adults with mood disorders completed a comprehensive assessment battery before and after the 12-week exercise intervention. RESULTS: We collected preintervention and postintervention data from 18 participants who improved on the general health, vitality, role of emotions, social functioning and mental health (all p≤0.01) HRQOL subscales. Performance improved on cognitive tests that assessed working memory and processing speed (p≤0.04); there were no improvements in complex executive functioning tasks. Regression analyses indicated that younger age, shorter illness duration and reduced bodily pain predicted social and cognitive outcomes. CONCLUSION: Participation in a group-based, structured running programme was associated with improved HRQOL and social and cognitive function.

Effects of a 12-week running programme in youth and adults with complex mood disorders.

OBJECTIVE: Although numerous studies suggest a salutary effect of exercise on mood, few studies have explored the effect of exercise in patients with complex mental illness. Accordingly, we evaluated the impact of running on stress, anxiety and depression in youth and adults with complex mood disorders including comorbid diagnoses, cognitive and social impairment and high relapse rates. METHODS: Participants were members of a running group at St Joseph Healthcare Hamilton's Mood Disorders Program, designed for clients with complex mood disorders. On a weekly basis, participants completed Cohen's Perceived Stress Scale, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI) questionnaires, providing an opportunity to evaluate the effect of running in this population. RESULTS: Data collected for 46 participants from April 2012 to July 2015 indicated a significant decrease in depression (p<0.0001), anxiety (p<0.0001) and stress (p=0.01) scores. Whereas younger participant age, younger age at onset of illness and higher perceived levels of friendship with other running group members (ps≤0.04) were associated with lower end-of-study depression, anxiety and stress scores, higher attendance was associated with decreasing BDI and BAI (ps≤0.01) scores over time. CONCLUSIONS: Aerobic exercise in a supportive group setting may improve mood symptoms in youth and adults with complex mood disorders, and perceived social support may be an important factor in programme's success. Further research is required to identify specifically the mechanisms underlying the therapeutic benefits associated with exercise-based therapy programmes.

Changes in self-schema structure in cognitive therapy for major depressive disorder: a randomized clinical trial.

Negative cognitive structure (particularly for interpersonal content) has been shown in some research to persist past a current episode of depression and potentially to be a stable marker of vulnerability for depression (D. J. A. Dozois, 2007; D. J. A. Dozois & K. S. Dobson, 2001a). Given that cognitive therapy (CT) is highly effective for treating the acute phase of a depressive episode and that this treatment also reduces the risk of relapse and recurrence, it is possible that CT may alter these stable cognitive structures. In the current study, patients were randomly assigned to CT+ pharmacotherapy (n = 21) or to pharmacotherapy alone (n = 21). Both groups evidenced significant and similar reductions in level of depression (as measured with the Beck Depression Inventory-II and the Hamilton Rating Scale for Depression), as well as automatic thoughts and dysfunctional attitudes. However, group differences were found on cognitive organization in favor of individuals who received the combination of CT+ pharmacotherapy. The implications of these results for understanding mechanisms of change in therapy and the prophylactic nature of CT are discussed.