In April of 2002, President Bush established the New Freedom Commission on Mental Health to conduct a "comprehensive study of the United States mental health service delivery system." In July of 2003, this commission issued its recommendations. This July, Bush will announce a massive plan to screen the entire U.S. population for mental illness and will direct more than 25 federal agencies to implement the committee's recommendations. At the core of the proposal are six goals:

1) Americans Understand that Mental Health Is Essential to Overall Health
2) Mental Health Care Is Consumer and Family Driven
3) Disparities in Mental Health Services Are Eliminated
4) Early Mental Health Screening, Assessment, and Referral to Services Are Common Practice
5) Excellent Mental Health Care Is Delivered and Research Is Accelerated
6) Technology Is Used to Access Mental Health Care and Information

So how does the government intend to implement such an ambitious program? A recent BMJ article written by Jeanne Lenzer suggests that the most likely avenue is through our schools. "Schools", wrote the commission, are in a "key position" to screen the 52 million students and 6 million adults who work at the schools.

While many view this plan as a step in the right direction, others are concerned that the initiative will "promote the use of expensive antidepressants and antipsychotic drugs favored by supporters of the administration." Indeed, Lenzer writes that the sweeping mental health initiative will use the Texas Medication Algorithm Project as a model, a model that has been criticized for promoting more recently approved drugs over older ones.

More on this story as it unfolds.

Update 7/7: Problems arise with Texas Mental health roll out