Illinois becomes first state requiring universal student mental‑health screenings
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Illinois is now the first state to plan universal mental health screenings for elementary, middle and high school students.
Why it matters: Anxiety, behavior disorders and depression are the most commonly diagnosed mental disorders in children, according to the CDC, and female and LGBTQ+ high school students struggle with mental health, violence and substance use more than their peers, the agency reported last year.
Driving the news: Beginning in January, the Illinois State Board of Education (ISBE) will work with public school districts to develop and administer annual mental health screenings, much like vision and hearing tests, for students in grades 3-12.
- Gov. JB Pritzker signed the bill into law July 31.
Zoom in: Despite destigmatization around discussing mental health, isolation from the COVID-19 pandemic and pervasive social media are two prevalent factors in shaping how young people are feeling.
- Social media can offer an outlet for those seeking a community they don't find at school or home, but it also presents unrealistic expectations of appearance and lifestyle that negatively impact kids.
How it works: Illinois' new law aims to equip school districts with tools to recognize signs that kids and families need help before a student is in crisis.
- The law is a "critical step in connecting intervention to prevention," state Sen. Sara Feigenholtz, the bill's sponsor, wrote in an op-ed last month.
- Over the next year, ISBE will work with school districts to develop the screening questions.
- Schools can implement sooner, but the law requires them to start screenings by the 2027-28 school year.
- Parents can opt out for their kids if they choose.
What they're saying: "Sadness, hopelessness and depression too often get chalked up to adolescent angst or growing pains," Feigenholtz wrote in the op-ed.
The other side: The senator was responding to a Chicago Tribune editorial that argued the law was scant on details and quoted a doctor who said most teens experience "transient problems," or what's more commonly known as regular ups and downs.
Zoom out: U.S. Rep. Mary Miller (R-IL) reintroduced the Parents Opt-In Protection Act recently in response to the new state law to require written consent from parents or guardians to allow students to get the screenings.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration earlier this year cut $1 billion in funding for youth mental health services, saying the money was being used to "implement race-based actions like recruiting quotas in ways that have nothing to do with mental health and could hurt the very students the grants are supposed to help," NPR reported.
- The administration also cut specially-trained counselors for LGBTQ+ youth at the national 988 suicide prevention hotline.
Yes, but: Illinois' Department of Human Services announced in July it would continue to provide this service and was looking to expand counselors trained specifically for LGBTQ+ youth.