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We have collected links to information that may be of use relating to Hurricane Katrina. If you have recommendations for other links, please e-mail Shawn Lea at slea@mhanet.org. MHA RESOURCES MHA
Staff Contacts on Katrina-Related Issues
HEALTH CARE RESOURCES The Kaiser Commission on Medicaid and the Uninsured held a briefing on health coverage in states affected by Hurricane Katrina. Background data on health coverage and demographics is also available.
PATIENT RESOURCES The Alzheimer's Association Mississippi Chapter is offering a helpline for people with dementia who were displaced by Hurricane Katrina. The helpline is a confidential service, staffed by clinicians who provide callers with information about understanding dementia, care-giving information, referrals to local resources and crisis assistance in more than 140 languages. For more information, visit www.alz.org or call 1-800-272-3900. The Spina Bifida Association and the Spina Bifida Association of Mississippi are offering a program to meet the critical needs of people born with this serious birth defect who are living in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. The SB HELP campaign is combing the experience of its 52 chapters with industry in bringing needed supplies and resources to people in need. For more information or to make a donation, go to www.sbaa.org or call the Spina Bifida Association of Mississippi at (601) 969-0601. Tetanus Vaccine Clinics in Mississippi The Mental Health Association of the Capital Area is available to offer free medication assistance to mentally ill persons in need of psychotropic medication. Individuals considered working poor, with no insurance, or other resources are eligible for assistance and must reside in Hinds, Rankin, or Madison Counties to qualify. Some individuals displaced due to Hurricane Katrina may qualify. Please contact Sylvia Thomas at 601-956-2800. National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health has a Web site with information for health care providers and cancer patients, including 1-800-4 CANCER, which can be used as an additional contact point for oncologists and cancer patients. The Mississippi Hospital Association surveyed Mississippi facilities to see where cancer patients in our state can receive radiation and oncology treatments currently. The facilities and contact information is available here. GenoMed Inc, a St Louis, Missouri-based Next Generation Disease Management company, announced that it was offering free assistance to medical workers confronting acute kidney failure in the wake of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. In future weeks, the Company stands ready to help with the expected resurgence in West Nile virus encephalitis and the possible emergence of other mosquito-borne viral diseases like dengue, St. Louis Equine Encephalitis, etc. The HHS Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration is providing a suicide prevention hotline, available to anyone at 800-273-TALK. The agency is also staffing from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily (ET) an emergency response center, providing behavioral health services for first responders, at 1-240-276-1200. Mississippi Department of Mental Health (DMH) has established a toll-free crisis helpline to help the victims and family members of those affected by Hurricane Katrina. To contact the DMH Office of Constituency Service helpline, call toll-free 1-877-210-8513. Trained DMH staff members will be on duty 24 hours a day, 7 days a week until further notice.
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