Bush's Plan- Screen Every US Citizen for Mental Illness/Drugs

[Guest guest]

Anyone see the movie- New World Order? It was on the Sci-Fi channel

a couple of times... It is this freaky vision of the future where

everyone is stuck with hollow lives, they had menial work by day,

and anonymous sex, spending or " soma " as their only avenues

of " recreation " . Soma was a drug that was taken like candy by the

whole population, it would literally just make people turn off...

In fact, that was their form of " vacation " . Wouldn't Bush (or any

politician) love a constituancy that was basically asleep at the

helm... They could do anything they wanted, without even having to

appear as if it was for the good of the people... The people would

be too drugged out to care. Then consider the profits of millions

and millions of people taking your drugs... But to get the ball

rolling, all you need to do is say your looking after the people by

offering this possibly manadatory screening, construct the necesary

diagnosis so you can sell your drugs, and hey, possibly even win

votes in the process for being such a good leader and looking out

for the " good " of the people...

Other comments?

Misty L. Trepke

http://www..com

 

Bush's plan to dose Americans with expensive antipsychotics

 

article at:

http://www.boingboing.net/2004/06/18/bushs_plan_to_dose_a.html

 

 

Friday, June 18, 2004

 

Bush's plan to dose Americans with expensive antipsychotics

President Bush's family has made a lot of money from drug companies

and still has very close ties to the pharmaceutical industry. (Bush

Sr was on Eli Lilly's board of directors and Bush Jr appointed

Lilly's CEO to a senior position on the Homeland Security Council.)

 

According to this British Medical Journal article, " Lilly made $1.6m

in political contributions in 2000—82% of which went to Bush and the

Republican Party. "

 

So it's not surprising that the President announced a plan to screen

the entire US population for mental illness and pump lots and lots

of people full of expensive Eli Lilly drugs. Bush's commission has

recommended that the federal government adopt a model based on the

Texas Medication Algorithm Project (TMAP) a medication treatment

plan that recommends Zyprexa as a first line antipsychotic drug for

patients.

 

Bush was governor of Texas when the plan was adopted, and Zyprexa

coincidentally happens to be made Eli Lilly. It's the drug company's

top seller, grossing $4.28 billion dollars last year. According to

the article, " A 2003 New York Times article by Gardiner Harris

reported that 70% of olanzapine sales are paid for by government

agencies, such as Medicare and Medicaid. " But the Texas project,

which promotes the use of newer, more expensive antidepressants and

antipsychotic drugs, sparked off controversy when Allen Jones, an

employee of the Pennsylvania Office of the Inspector

 

General, revealed that key officials with influence over the

medication plan in his state received money and perks from drug

companies with a stake in the medication algorithm (15 May, p1153).

He was sacked this week for speaking to the BMJ and the New York

Times.

 

Mr Jones told the BMJ that the same " political/pharmaceutical

alliance " that generated the Texas project was behind the

recommendations of the New Freedom Commission, which, according to

his whistleblower report, were " poised to consolidate the TMAP

effort into a comprehensive national policy to treat mental illness

with expensive, patented medications of questionable benefit and

deadly side effects, and to force private insurers to pick up more

of the tab. "

 

Link

posted by Mark Frauenfelder at 09:59:20 AM permanent link to this

entry | New! Other blogs commenting on this post

Article Here.

 

http://bmj.bmjjournals.com/cgi/content/full/328/7454/1458

 

BMJ 2004;328:1458 (19 June), doi:10.1136/bmj.328.7454.1458

 

 

Bush plans to screen whole US population for mental illness Jeanne

Lenzer New York

 

A sweeping mental health initiative will be unveiled by President

George W Bush in July. The plan promises to integrate mentally ill

patients fully into the community by providing " services in the

community, rather than institutions, " according to a March 2004

progress report entitled New Freedom Initiative

(www.whitehouse.gov/infocus/newfreedom/toc-2004.html). While some

praise the plan's goals, others say it protects the

profits of drug companies at the expense of the public.

 

Bush established the New Freedom Commission on Mental Health in

April 2002 to conduct a " comprehensive study of the United States

mental health service delivery system. " The commission issued its

recommendations in July 2003. Bush instructed more than 25 federal

agencies to develop an implementation plan based on those

recommendations.

 

The president's commission found that " despite their prevalence,

mental disorders often go undiagnosed " and recommended comprehensive

mental health screening for " consumers of all ages, " including

preschool children. According to the commission, " Each year, young

children are expelled from preschools and childcare facilities for

severely disruptive behaviours and emotional disorders. " Schools,

wrote the commission, are in a " key position " to screen the 52

million students and 6 million adults who work at the schools.

 

The commission also recommended " Linkage [of screening] with

treatment and supports " including " state-of-the-art treatments "

using " specific medications for specific conditions. " The commission

commended the Texas Medication Algorithm Project (TMAP) as a " model "

medication treatment plan that " illustrates an evidence-based

practice that results in better consumer outcomes. "

 

Dr Darrel Regier, director of research at the American Psychiatric

Association (APA), lauded the president's initiative and the Texas

project model saying, " What's nice about TMAP is that this is a

logical plan based on efficacy data from clinical trials. "

 

He said the association has called for increased funding for

implementation of the overall plan.

 

But the Texas project, which promotes the use of newer, more

expensive antidepressants and antipsychotic drugs, sparked off

controversy when Allen Jones, an employee of the Pennsylvania Office

of the Inspector General, revealed that key officials with influence

over the medication plan in his state received money and perks from

drug companies with a stake in the medication algorithm (15 May,

p1153). He was sacked this week for speaking to the BMJ and the New

York Times.

 

The Texas project started in 1995 as an alliance of individuals from

the pharmaceutical industry, the University of Texas, and the mental

health and corrections systems of Texas. The project was funded by a

Robert Wood Johnson grant—and by several drug companies.

 

Mr Jones told the BMJ that the same " political/pharmaceutical

alliance " that generated the Texas project was behind the

recommendations of the New Freedom Commission, which, according to

his whistleblower report, were " poised to consolidate the TMAP

effort into a comprehensive national policy to treat mental illness

with expensive, patented medications of questionable benefit and

deadly side effects, and to force private insurers to pick up more

of the tab "

(http://psychrights.org/Drugs/AllenJonesTMAPJanuary20.pdf).

 

Larry D Sasich, research associate with Public Citizen in

Washington, DC, told the BMJ that studies in both the United States

and Great Britain suggest that " using the older drugs first makes

sense. There's nothing in the labeling of the newer atypical

antipsychotic drugs that suggests they are superior in efficacy to

haloperidol [an older " typical " antipsychotic]. There has to be an

enormous amount of unnecessary expenditures for the newer drugs.. "

 

 

Olanzapine (trade name Zyprexa), one of the atypical antipsychotic

drugs recommended as a first line drug in the Texas algorithm,

grossed $4.28bn (£2.35bn; 3.56bn) worldwide in 2003 and is Eli

Lilly's top selling drug. A 2003 New York Times article by Gardiner

Harris reported that 70% of olanzapine sales are paid for by

government agencies, such as Medicare and Medicaid.

 

Eli Lilly, manufacturer of olanzapine, has multiple ties to the Bush

administration. George Bush Sr was a member of Lilly's board of

directors and Bush Jr appointed Lilly's chief executive officer,

Sidney Taurel, to a seat on the Homeland Security Council. Lilly

made $1.6m in political contributions in 2000—82% of which went to

Bush and the Republican Party.

 

Jones points out that the companies that helped to start up the

Texas project have been, and still are, big contributors to the

election funds of George W Bush. In addition, some members of the

New Freedom Commission have served on advisory boards for these same

companies, while others have direct ties to the

 

Texas Medication Algorithm Project.

Bush was the governor of Texas during the development of the Texas

project, and, during his 2000 presidential campaign, he boasted of

his support for the project and the fact that the legislation he

passed expanded Medicaid coverage of psychotropic drugs.

 

Bush is the clear front runner when it comes to drug company

contributions. According to the Center for Responsive Politics

(CRP), manufacturers of drugs and health products have contributed

$764 274 to the 2004 Bush campaign through their political action

committees and employees—far outstripping the $149 400 given to his

chief rival, John Kerry, by 26 April.

 

Drug companies have fared exceedingly well under the Bush

administration, according to the centre's spokesperson, Steven

Weiss.

 

The commission's recommendation for increased screening has also

been questioned. Robert Whitaker, journalist and author of Mad in

America, says that while increased screening " may seem defensible, "

it could also be seen as " fishing for customers, " and that

exorbitant spending on new drugs " robs from other forms of care such

as job training and shelter programmes. "

 

But Dr Graham Emslie, who helped develop the Texas project, defends

screening: " There are good data showing that if you identify kids at

an earlier age who are aggressive, you can intervene... and change

their trajectory. "

 

--

 

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