Feb. 5, 1963 - President Kennedy outlined today a new approach to mental illness using “new medical, scientific, and social tools and insights.” The plan hopes to reduce by half the population of mental hospitals and the number of mentally disabled born each year. In a special message to Congress, the first by a President on this subject, Mr. Kennedy urged a comprehensive, long-range program in which Federal funds would stimulate state, local, and private action for a limited time. For mental illness, he recommended the construction of comprehensive community centers which would emphasize prevention, treatment, and rehabilitation at the local level instead of the present “reliance on the cold mercy of custodial isolation” in state institutions. The aim is to cut by half, within a decade or two, the 600,000 persons now institutionalized for psychological disorders. For the mentally disabled, the President urged a “broad spectrum” attack on the variety of medical, social, economic, and cultural factors believed to cause the damage. The aim is to reduce by half the 126,000 babies born each year who are destined for intellectual disabilities.
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