mental health
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Psychedelics are a safe, novel approach to Colorado’s mental health crisis | OPINION
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By Sarah Markey and Dafna Michaelson-Jenet We all have moments in which we experience feelings of anxiety and depression. This is part of what it means to be human in today’s world — there is no shortage of suffering. The problem arises when these feelings are no longer moments, but a prolonged, recurrent state of…
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Colorado justices ponder ‘gotcha’ for defendant after messy process impacted mental health evidence
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Some members of the Colorado Supreme Court were uncomfortable last week with letting a defendant’s murder conviction stand after a series of missteps resulted in a trial judge blocking jurors from hearing an expert’s assessment of the defendant’s mental health. Although the details were complicated, the legal issue was more streamlined: State law requires defendants…
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Colorado Supreme Court signals intervention in 4 ongoing cases
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The Colorado Supreme Court recently signaled that it may intervene in four cases from various trial courts, two criminal and two civil. At least four of the court’s seven members must agree to initiate the process of granting relief in a case outside the usual appellate procedure. The cases address an expert’s insight into child-parent…
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Parental rights group seeks to repeal competency law
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A group of parental rights advocates and Republican lawmakers is urging the Colorado legislature to repeal a 2024 law that made changes to the state’s competency procedures. Established over the summer, the group called We The Parents includes members of the Colorado Parental Advocacy Network and legislators from the more conservative wing of the Republican…
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Veteran suicide declines after years of focused prevention in El Paso County
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Editor’s note: Those who are in crisis or facing suicidal thoughts are encouraged to call the 988 crisis hotline. Former Marine Corps Sgt. Heath Miller was facing prison for theft when he decided to get clean. Like many others, his introduction to opioids started with a prescription. He received oxycodone while in the Marines to…
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Budget cuts threaten Youth Mental Health Corps for rural students
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In rural Colorado, a single school counselor can face impossible odds. With limited staff, students in crisis are at high risk of slipping through the cracks, and having their emotional, social, and academic needs unmet. At Moffat Schools in the San Luis Valley, school counselor Sarah DeLeon knows those challenges firsthand. “School counselors can be…
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Medicaid spending surge for therapy sessions prompts Colorado to reinstate limits
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Colorado’s health agency will reinstate prior authorization requirements for Medicaid patients’ therapy sessions next year as part of its efforts to control costs, which soared following a state law passed in 2022. That year, the state legislature adopted a bill prohibiting health plans from requiring prior authorization for psychotherapy sessions for Medicaid recipients. While the…
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Colorado Democrat Yadira Caraveo drops bid to win back 8th Congressional District seat
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Former U.S. Rep. Yadira Caraveo announced on Friday that she was ending her campaign to reclaim the Colorado congressional seat the Thornton Democrat lost last year in one of the closest U.S. House races in the country. Caraveo, a pediatrician and the first Latina to represent the state in Washington said in a statement that…
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Colorado courts starting new program to direct defendants to external care based on competency
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In an attempt to reduce wait times for inpatient defendant competency restoration, Colorado courts are launching a new program to divert eligible people into a separate community care process. The near-$1.5 million program, which uses money from the general fund and was spurred by the passage of House Bill 24-1355 last June, will create a…
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Colorado justices block testimony of autism behaviors in Boulder County murder prosecution
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The Colorado Supreme Court on Monday blocked a defendant accused of a cold case murder from introducing testimony about how his autism spectrum disorder may have contributed to behavior police perceived as deceptive. The court’s unsigned Sept. 8 order stated, without elaboration, that the intended expert testimony did not meet the requirements of state law.…
