Venuri Siriwardane

3 weeks ago | publicsource.org | Venuri Siriwardane

Some new members of an Allegheny County board — which advises officials on services for some of the county’s most vulnerable residents — are asking tough questions about the county’s exploration of a controversial tool for involuntary mental health treatment. Members of the county’s Mental Health/Intellectual Disabilities Advisory Board — who were confirmed by County Council last month — officially met for the first time Wednesday. The previous members’ terms expired in 2023.

3 weeks ago | publicsource.org | Venuri Siriwardane

Allegheny County is on the brink of implementing a controversial type of involuntary mental health treatment, but it has few lessons to learn from other Pennsylvania counties. The majority have opted out of implementing the state’s law for assisted outpatient treatment [AOT] — a legal mechanism for involuntarily providing treatment in the community, often including medication, to people with serious mental illness.

3 weeks ago | publicsource.org | Venuri Siriwardane

After years of opting out, Allegheny County could soon adopt a controversial type of involuntary mental health treatment that takes place in the community instead of a hospital. The move sparked joy among some local advocates, who have long decried “dangerousness” as a standard for commitment, and fury among others, who point to the harms caused by forced psychiatric care.

1 month ago | voiceofalexandria.com | Venuri Siriwardane |Maddy Franklin

The shock of a Trump administration policy that would slash federal research funding is giving way to pain in Pittsburgh, with expected layoffs and career paths in jeopardy. A Feb. 7 memo, reportedly drafted by administration officials, said the National Institutes of Health would cap indirect costs -- funding for research operating expenses -- at 15% across all grants for research institutions.

2 months ago | yahoo.com | Stephanie Strasburg |Venuri Siriwardane

Lavier Pounds, a volunteer with TransYOUniting, of the North Side, rallies the crowd in the rain outside UPMC’s Downtown headquarters as they call for UPMC to reinstate gender-affirming care for people under 19, on Thursday, April 3, 2025. “It’s okay to be ourselves," said Pounds. "I’m here to help us uprise." (Photo by Stephanie Strasburg/PublicSource)This article first appeared on PublicSource and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.