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The White House on Tuesday unveiled an updated national strategy on suicide prevention that includes more emphasis on health equity and diversity and the mental-health impact of social media, revising its decade-old plan amid a national rise in suicide rates. American health professionals told VOA a national plan is essential to tackling the problem. "The new national strategy focuses on a "whole of society" approach, which is unique —and critical — because no single entity alone can reduce suicide rates. But together, we have a real opportunity for impact," Hannah Wesolowski, chief advocacy officer of the National Alliance on Mental Illness, told VOA in an email. (Powell, 4/23)

Actor Ashley Judd and singer-songwriter Aloe Blacc, who both lost loved ones to suicide, on Tuesday helped the Biden administration promote its new national strategy to prevent suicide. Judd’s mother, country star Naomi Judd, died nearly two years ago. Blacc’s frequent collaborator, Tim Bergling, died in 2018. Both were on hand as Doug Emhoff, the husband of Vice President Kamala Harris, helped unveil the Democratic administration’s blueprint for reducing suicides in the United States. Some 132 people a day kill themselves, he said. “We’re here today because we know that we can and will change this,” Emhoff said. “Suicide is preventable.” (Superville, 4/23)

Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Monday a $34 million initiative aimed at bolstering mental health services in Uvalde. Construction for a new behavioral health campus in Uvalde is expected to begin later this year, according to a press release from the governor’s office. The project aims to help children and adults grappling with mental health crises in Uvalde and across 32 counties in the surrounding area. (Madden, 4/23)

The Tennessee legislature passed a bill Tuesday that would allow teachers and school staffers to carry concealed handguns in schools, one of the most divisive steps taken by Republican leaders in the year since six people were killed by a shooter at a Nashville school. The House approved the measure as protesters shouted objections, nearly drowning out the proceedings with chants of “Not one more kid!” At least one person was kicked out of the gallery by House Speaker Cameron Sexton (R). (McDaniel and Rosenzweig-Ziff, 4/23)

A local healthcare system is offering suicide prevention courses throughout the Chicago area.  Franciscan Health, which has hospitals in Northwest Indiana and Chicago's south suburbs, is offering free Question, Persuade, Refer Suicide Prevention Courses in April and May. The courses are based on a curriculum developed by the QPR Institute. According to the QPR Institute, people trained will learn how to recognize the warning signs of a suicide crisis and how to question, persuade and refer someone to help. (Kaufman and Mogos, 4/23)

Headspace, a virtual mental health provider, has launched a direct-to-consumer coaching service to broaden its reach beyond enterprise customers. The company's pivot towards direct-to-consumer virtual care, where companies offer prescription medications and other treatments to patients through subscriptions, comes at a time where many in the industry are increasingly bullish on the business model. (Perna, 4/23)

Many parents today find parenting a challenge to their ability to connect with other adults, according to a new national survey published Wednesday by the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in Columbus. In fact, 66% of 1,005 surveyed parents felt the demands of parenthood sometimes or frequently left them feeling isolated and lonely, while nearly 40% felt as if they have no one to support them in their parenting role. (LaMotte, 4/24)

Last month, six autistic academics published a letter in “Autism,” a journal dedicated to autism research, with an explosive assertion: Sociologist Judy Singer, who has been described as the “mother of neurodiversity,” should not be regarded as such and did not originate the concept she has built her career on. (Luterman and Sosin, 4/23)