In 2003, Texas decided only to treat three mental health diagnoses: schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and major depression. Everyone else—and everyone who suffered from these but was misdiagnosed or undiagnosed—became ineligible for community-based health services.
Richard Curtis' schizophrenic son was rejected repeatedly from Social Security, which would allow him to qualify for Medi-Cal and more extensive county services.
Deputy David Frost, who oversees a California county jail’s two mental health wings, said it’s not uncommon for seriously ill inmates to wait there for months, even after a judge orders them transferred to a state hospital.
