US panel proposes anxiety screening for all adults below 65

Guidance aimed at preventing mental health disorders from going untreated for years

NEW YORK-A panel of medical experts has recommended for the first time that doctors screen all adult patients younger than 65 for anxiety, guidance that highlights the extraordinary stress levels that have plagued the United States since the start of the pandemic.

The advisory group, called the US Preventive Services Task Force, said on Tuesday that the guidance was intended to help prevent mental health disorders from going undetected and untreated for years or even decades.

It made a similar recommendation for children and teenagers earlier this year.

The panel, appointed by an arm of the federal Department of Health and Human Services, has been preparing the guidance since before the pandemic.

The recommendations come at a time of "critical need", said Dr Lori Pbert, a clinical psychologist and professor at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School, who serves on the task force.