Guest guest Posted September 8, 2004 Report Share Posted September 8, 2004 > SSRI-Research > Wed, 8 Sep 2004 08:09:53 -0400 > [sSRI-Research] URGENT ALERT!! SUPPORT THE > RON PAUL AMENDMENT TO CUT OFF FUNDS FOR MENTAL > HEALTH SCREENING Karen R. Effrem, MD > > ALLIANCE FOR HUMAN RESEARCH PROTECTION (AHRP) > Promoting openness and full > disclosure http://www.ahrp.org > > FYI & Immediate Action > > > URGENT ALERT!! SUPPORT THE RON PAUL AMENDMENT TO CUT > OFF FUNDS FOR MENTAL > HEALTH SCREENING Karen R. Effrem, MD > > > EdAction Board of Directors > > Physician and Republican Congressman Ron Paul will > offer an amendment > prohibiting funding for universal mental health > screening programs to the > Labor/Health and Human Services/Education > appropriations bill to be debated > on the US House floor on Wednesday and Thursday, > September 8th and 9th. It > is urgent that you call your Member of Congress and > the House leadership > > TODAY with your support of the Paul amendment: > Find your Member of Congress at www.congress.org > House Speaker Dennis > Hastert: 202-225-2976 House Majority Leader Tom > DeLay: 202-225-5951 House > Majority Whip Roy Blunt: 202-225-6536 > > EdAction strongly supports this type of amendment, > as does a broad coalition > of education, family, and medical/mental health > groups. The long list > includes Eagle Forum, Concerned Women for America, > the Association of > American Physicians and Surgeons, Gun Owners of > America, the Alliance for > Human Research Protection, the International Center > for the Study of > Psychiatry and Psychology, and Freedom 21 . > > Universal mental health screening and the drugging > of children, as > recommended by the New Freedom Commission, needs to > be stopped so that many > thousands if not millions of children will be saved > from receiving > stigmatizing diagnoses that would follow them for > the rest of their lives. > > America's school children should not be medicated by > expensive, ineffective, > and dangerous medications based on vague and dubious > diagnoses. > > Use the following talking points. (For more details > on each of these points, > see http://edaction.org/2004/082704.htm and > http://www.edaction.org/2003/030827.htm) > 1) Parental rights are unclear or non-existent under > these screening > programs. - What are the rights of youth and their > parents to refuse or opt > out of this screening? Will they face coercion and > threats of removal from > school or child abuse/neglect charges if they > refuse? How reliable are the > screening instruments? What if the diagnosis is > wrong? How will a child or > adolescent remove a stigmatizing label from their > records that could follow > them the rest of their lives? Will parents be > honestly told about the > potentially severe side effects of the medications > used in treatment? > > 2) Parents are already being coerced to put their > children on > psychiatric medications and some children are dying > because of it. - > Universal screening and the accompanying treatments > recommended by the New > Freedom Commission will only increase that problem. > Both Matthew Smith and > Shaina Dunkle died of medication toxicity after > their parents were coerced > to place their children on drugs by the schools. > Across the country, > Patricia Weathers, the Carroll Family, the Johnston > Family, and the Salazar > Family were all charged or threatened with child > abuse charges for refusing > or taking their children off of psychiatric > medications. > > 3) Merging screening with the academic standards > required by No Child > Left Behind, as is happening in Illinois, will lead > to diagnosis for > political reasons. - School mental health and > violence prevention programs > funded by NCLB and government counterterrorism > operations are already using > such criteria as " homophobia " and " defenders of the > US Constitution against > federal government and the UN " to label school > children and US citizens as > mentally unstable and violent. > > 4) Mental health screening does not prevent suicide. > - The U.S. > Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) recommended > against screening for > suicide, saying, " USPSTF found no evidence that > screening for suicide risk > reduces suicide attempts or mortality. There is > limited evidence on the > accuracy of screening tools to identify suicide risk > in the primary care > setting, including tools to identify those at high > risk. " (See > http://www.ahrp.org/infomail/04/05/21.html) > > 5) Mental health diagnoses are " subjective " and > " social constructions " > as admitted by the authors of the diagnostic manuals > themselves. > > 6) Most psychiatric medications do not work in > children - Medical > textbooks, published and unpublished research, and > government reports > consistently state that the long term safety and > effectiveness of > antidepressants like Prozac and stimulants like > Ritalin have yet to be > proven. > > 7) The side effects of these medications in children > are severe. - They > include suicide, violence, psychosis, cardiac > (heart) toxicity, growth > suppression, and diabetes. Several school shooters, > like Eric Harris > (Columbine), Kip Kinkel (Oregon), and Jason Hoffman > (San Diego) were on > antidepressants or stimulants or both at the time of > their crimes. > > > > Contact: Vera Hassner Sharav > Tel: 212-595-8974 > e-mail: veracare > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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