Mothers Act A Multibillion Dollar Industry

[Guest guest]

The usual suspect....they stop at nothing!

 

The utter callousness is unbelievable---even for this bunch...

 

PEASE act in this!!

 

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How about FAXING or calling your Senator (just one call). Names and Numbersare below.Mothers Act Fuels Multibillion Dollar IndustryTuesday, 7 April 2009, 1:59 pmColumn: Evelyn Pringleby <http://www.scoop. co.nz/stories/ HL0904/S00076. htm#a> Evelyn PringleMotherhood has fallen prey to the psycho-pharmaceutic al complex. If newlegislation known as the Mother's Act becomes law, the drugging of infantsthrough pregnant and nursing mothers will no doubt increase.Congress has rightfully refused to pass this bill for eight years. Theofficial title is currently the "Melanie Blocker Stokes Mom's Opportunity toAccess Health, Education, Research, and Support for Postpartum DepressionAct of 2009.". .The

legislation was introduced in the House during the 110th Congress onJanuary 4, 2007, by Illinois Democrat Bobby Rush and later reintroduced intoboth bodies of the new Congress in January 2009, after the bill died in theSenate last year.Democratic Senator Robert Menendez from New Jersey, home to a large numberof drug companies, and Richard Durbin (D-IL) are the main sponsors of thebill in the Senate.In a March 30, 2009 speech on the House floor, Congressman Rush identifiedthe target of this piece of legislation when he claimed that, "60 to 80percent of new mothers experience symptoms of postpartum depression whilethe more serious condition, postpartum psychosis, affects up to 20 percentof women who have recently given birth."After the House voted to pass the legislation on that day, the Congressmanstated: "H. R. 20 will finally put significant money and attention intoresearch, screening,

treatment and education for mothers suffering from thisdisease."However, he only mentions screening and treatment for postpartum depression.The true goal of the promoters of this Act is to transform women of childbearing age into life-long consumers of psychiatric treatment by screeningwomen for a whole list of "mood" and "anxiety" disorders and not simplypostpartum depression.Enough cannot be said about the ability of anyone with a white coat and amedical title to convince vulnerable pregnant women and new mothers that thethoughts and feelings they experience on any given day might be abnormal.The constant watching and barrage of questions such as are you depressed,are you anxious, are you moody, are you fearful of motherhood, are yousleeping well, are there changes in your eating habits, will predictablyhave the net effect of convincing many women that normal thoughts andemotions are

a sign of mental disorders.In the March 13, 2008 NewsWithViews article, "Branding Pregnancy as a MentalIllness," Byron Richards writes:"The Mothers Act has the net affect of reclassifying the natural process ofpregnancy and birth as a mental disorder that requires the use of unprovenand extremely dangerous psychotropic medications (which can also easily harmthe child). The bill was obviously written by the Big Pharma lobby and itspassage into law would be considered laughable except that it is actuallyhappening."While mania, psychosis, agitation, hostility, anxiety, confusion, depressionand suicidality are often cited as "symptoms" of mental illness, many of thesame exact "symptoms" are listed as side effects on the warning labels forantidepressants, antipsychotics and anticonvulsants.All of these drugs are now being prescribed to treat the "mood" and"anxiety" disorders that women

will be screened for if the Act becomes law.In the case of pregnant women, no psychiatric drug has been FDA approved assafe for use.The newly recruited customers will be stigmatized for life with labels ofthe most serious forms of mental illness simply because they are unluckyenough to become pregnant in the United States, where serious disorders leadto major profits from the prescribing of multiple classes of psychotropicdrugs.On September 1, 2008, Medical News Today ran a headline for a study thatstated: "Americans Show Little Tolerance For Mental Illness Despite GrowingBelief In Genetic Cause." The study by University of Pennsylvania sociologyprofessor Jason Schnittker showed that while more Americans believe thatmental illness has genetic causes, the country is no more tolerant of thementally ill than it was 10 years ago.The study explored tolerance in terms of: unwillingness to

live next door toa mentally ill person, having a group home for the mentally ill in theneighborhood, spending an evening socializing with a mentally ill person,working closely with such a person on the job, making friends with someonewith a mental illness or having a mentally ill person marry into the family.Multi-billion dollar industryIn an article for AlterNet on June 18, 2008, Dr Bruce Levine, author of thebook, "Surviving America's Depression Epidemic," explains how thepsycho-pharmaceutic al cartel works. "Mental health treatment in the UnitedStates is now a multibillion- dollar industry," he reports, "and all therules of industrial complexes apply.""Not only does Big Pharma have influential psychiatrists. .. in their pocket,virtually every mental health institution from which doctors, the press, andthe general public receive their mental health information is

financiallyinterconnected with Big Pharma.""The American Psychiatric Association, psychiatry's professionalorganization, is hugely dependent on drug company grants, and this is alsotrue for the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill and other so-calledconsumer organizations. ""Harvard and other prestigious university psychiatry departments takemillions of dollars from drug companies, and the National Institute ofMental Health funds researchers who are financially connected with drugcompanies."More Democrats than Republicans are supporting the Mother's Act. Theincreased campaign funding to Democrats may well explain this turn ofevents. For the last eight election cycles the pharmaceutical industry hascontributed far more to Republicans than Democrats. In the 2006 cycle thepercentage was 28% to Democrats and 70% to Republicans, according to theCenter for Responsive Politics, a

nonprofit group that tracks politicalfunding.But the Democrats were close to matching the Republicans for the 2008 cyclewith $5,099,942 to Democrats compared to $5,680,871 to Republicans, which isprobably why the Democrats would allow such an obvious drug marketing schemeto be implemented."The Mothers Act, while appearing like an Act of benevolence, is a dangerousand unnecessary measure that will result in the further over-prescription ofdrugs that are already grotesquely over-prescribed, " says Kate Gillespie,one of the lead attorneys handling SSRI birth defect lawsuits and Paxilsuicide cases at the Los Angeles based Baum, Hedlund, Aristei & Goldman lawfirm."The Act is a slippery slope," she warns, "toward the forced drugging ofwomen of childbearing years with drugs of questionable efficacy and serioussafety issues effecting mothers and their innocent children - drugs that

cancause horrific side effects, including, suicidal behavior, violence anddevastating birth defects.""Of course, mothers who truly cannot cope should be helped," Ms Gillespiesays, "but do we really need legislation requiring mothers to be screenedand drugged?""Take out politics and Big Pharma and the push for this legislation justdoesn't make sense," she states."For politicians, a much safer issue than pushing drugs for pregnant mothersis promoting the expansion of medical treatment for postpartum depression,"according to Dr Levine.He says the Mother's Act "omits relevant truths" about MelanieBlocker-Stokes, the woman the bill is named after, and the followinginformation about her suicide should be made known:"Blocker-Stokes. .. did in fact receive extensive psychiatric treatment. Shewas hospitalized three times in seven weeks, given four combinations ofanti-psychotic,

anti-anxiety, and antidepressant medications, and underwentelectroconvulsive therapy (electroshock) . But despite her psychiatrictreatment -- or because of it -- Melanie Blocker-Stokes jumped to her deathfrom the twelfth floor of a Chicago hotel.""There is no evidence that antidepressant use by depressed mothers lowerstheir likelihood of suicide," Dr Levine says, "and there is a great deal ofevidence that antidepressant use can make some people manic, agitated, andviolent."Money-making promoters behind the ActKatherine Stone runs an internet website called "Postpartum Progress" andposts a daily blog. She also serves on the board of Postpartum SupportInternational as the public relations outreach chairwoman. Her Bio says she"is a nationally-recogniz ed, award-winning advocate for women with perinatalmood and anxiety disorders.""In 2001," Katherine reports on her website, that "she

suffered postpartumobsessive compulsive disorder after the birth of her first child. Thefeeling of isolation and shame she suffered inspired her to createPostpartum Progress, which has become the most widely-read blog in theUnited States on postpartum depression, postpartum OCD, antepartumdepression, postpartum PTSD and postpartum psychosis."On another page titled, "The Art of Psychiatric Medication," Katherine tellswomen to hang in there if a medication does not work because for herdiagnosis of OCD, she states:"I've taken many medications, including Effexor, Celexa, Seroquel,Risperdal, Wellbutrin, Luvox, Cymbalta, etc. Throughout all of them, I wason the road to recovery. Some just worked better than others at treating mysymptoms."She ends the commentary by telling women: "You will find the rightmedication for you, and you will get better."The prescribing of seven drugs,

including two antipsychotics and fiveantidepressants, to treat OCD is a typical example of the profit-drivendrugging that women snagged by the Mother's Act will face, but it's a farcry from the description Katherine wrote about regarding the comparativelyminor treatment she received, when she stated in the June 7, 2004 issue ofNewsweek, "in my case, that meant taking an antidepressant and going forweekly therapy sessions."Aside from all the serious health risks now known to be associated withthese drugs, most women could not afford the 7-drug "cure" that Katherineingested. According to DrugStore.com in December 2008, from first to last,at a middle dose for a 30-day supply, the drugs would cost: Effexor $197.86,Celexa $279.92, Seroquel $388.38, Risperdal $652.07, Wellbutrin XI $202.08,Luvox CR $135.99, and Cymbalta $366.62. The cost of "etc" is impossible tocalculate without knowing how many more

drugs she took.In a March 11, 2009 Postpartum Progress blog, Katherine plugs herself forspeaking jobs, along with a study that concluded "the Internet is a viableand feasible tool to screen for PPD.""I'll be adding this study to the speech I give on how women with perinatalmood and anxiety disorders use the Internet," she reports, and then adds:"If you're interested in having me speak at your event, let me know!"On March 10, 2009, Katherine's headline read: "It's Petition Signing Time!Get Out Your Virtual Pen & Support Women with PPD", and reported "that SusanStone over at Perinatal Pro is alerting everyone to the new petition createdby the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance to support the MelanieBlocker Stokes MOTHERS Act. She states that last year's petition generatedmore than 24,000 signatures. The petition has been reintroduced this year totry and get this legislation

passed once again."The blog carried a live link to a page where "you can scroll down, enteryour zip code and generate letters of support in a matter of seconds for theMelanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act that will be sent to your localCongresspeople and Senators."Katherine further told readers: "I know you're thinking 'but I already didthat last year.' Well that was then and this is now. Do it again."The 2007 Annual Report for the Depression and Bipolar Support Alliance showsthis Big Pharma front group received between $150,000 and $499,000 fromAstraZeneca, Pfizer, and Wyeth. Abbott Labs, Cyberonics, Eli Lilly, ForestLabs, GlaxoSmithKline, Organon, and Otsuka American Pharmaceuticals eachgave between $10,000 and $149,999.The 2006 Annual Report shows that AstraZeneca gave the group more than$500,000. Abbott Labs, Bristol-Myers Squibb and Wyeth gave between $150,000and $499,000, and

Forest Labs, Glaxo, Janssen, Pfizer, and ShirePharmaceuticals each gave between $10,000 and $149,000. The Depression andBipolar Support Alliance in Baltimore also received $5,000 from Eli Lilly inthe first quarter of 2008, according to Lilly's grant report.In the section of the 2007 Annual report "at a Glance: How We Met OurMission," among the things accomplished by the group, it states:"Promoted Melanie Blocker-Stokes Postpartum Depression Research & Care Actat invitation of Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.)"Promoted MOTHER's Act at invitation of Sen. Dick Durbin (D-Ill.)"After writing letters to Congress through the link established by theindustry funded Alliance, those visiting Postpartum Progress will hopefully to Amazon and buy the book "Perinatal and Postpartum MoodDisorders: Perspectives and Treatment Guide for the Health CarePractitioner" by none other than the

Perinatal Pro "expert," Susan (Dowd)Stone, and Alexis Menkin, at a special price of $43.20, for a savings of$10.80.Katherine also provides a link to the PerinatalPro website, where women canfind treatment for all the "mood" and "anxiety" disorders diagnosed withinternet screenings at "Blue Skye Consulting," where Susan is listed as theManaging Director and Owner.She also served as president of Postpartum Support International from 2006 -2008, as vice-president and Conference Chair in 2005 - 2006, and will chairthe group's President's Advisory Council through 2010. This group brags ofbeing the leading proponent of the Mother's Act. On March 2, 2009, Susan'sPerinatalPro Blog announced: "The Melanie Blocker Stokes MOTHERS Act movesforward!" and stated:"Thank you to Congressman Bobby L. Rush, U.S. Senator Robert Menendez andSenator Richard Durbin for your unceasing efforts on behalf of

America'smothers!"She should have thanked these members of Congress for boosting her careerstatus and yearly income from her treatment center, speaking fees and booksales.On PerinatalPro, Susan posts a running list of supporters for the Mother'sAct. On March 27, 2009, the list included many drug company funded groups.For instance, the American Psychiatric Association is listed as a supporter.In 2006, the pharmaceutical industry provided close to 30% of theAssociation' s $62.5 million in financing, according to the July 12, 2008 NewYork Times.In the first quarter of 2007, Eli Lilly gave the Association grants worthmore than $412,000, according to Lilly's grant report. The group alsoreceived $623,190 from Lilly in the first quarter of 2008.In her PerinatalPro blogs, Susan has nothing but praise for Katherine'swebsite and directs visitors back to Postpartum Progress with a live

link.On March 16, 2009, Katherine posted a "Quick Survey on Postpartum Anxiety,"and wrote:"The fabulous Karen Kleiman has asked me to ask you to participate in ashort, five-question online survey on anxiety. She says ANYONE can answerit, regardless of the age of their baby(s) and regardless of diagnosis orlack thereof. ANY mother should answer the questions. It's super quick -- Iknow because I took it myself."Kleiman must be fabulous because she has three books for sale on PostpartumProgress with links to purchase them on Amazon. In fact, there are a totalof fourteen books for sale on Katherine's site from which she most likelygets a kick-back with every sale.Kleiman's survey is an excellent example of the methods used to con womeninto suspecting they are mentally ill via the "expert" blogs. The prefacestates: "The questions on this survey can be answered by a new mother of aninfant

or an empty-nester with good recall of the early days with her baby.Please answer as honestly as you can."The question, capital letters and all, reads: "When you were carrying yourbaby down a flight of stairs, did you EVER, at ANY time, have ANY thought,image or concern that you could accidentally drop your baby?" The surveyfurther tells women:If you answered YES to the first question, please describe the type of worryyou had: Scary thoughts about dropping the baby, Scary images about droppingthe baby, Both thoughts and images, Other.How much distress did this cause you? A Great deal of distress, Somedistress but I quickly got over it, Some distress that seemed to linger, Notmuch stressDid this thought or image occur once or did it recur? Only once, It recurredfrequently, It recurred persistently, It occurred off and on, Did you evertell anyone about the fear of dropping the baby?

(Please describe why youchose to tell someone or why you chose not to)As a mother with good recall, the "honest" answer is yes, with two babiesborn 4 years apart, every single night as I stumbled out of bed half asleepfor a nightly feeding, my normal fear instinct kicked in and warned me to becareful not to trip and fall down the stairs or drop the baby.Women who take the survey are told nothing about what the results mean; butclearly the seed is planted that something is wrong if you "EVER, at ANYtime, have ANY thought, image or concern that you could accidentally dropyour baby".Katherine's website also provides links to the "Top Women's PPMD TreatmentPrograms & Specialists. " The first link on the list takes women to the"Emory Women's Mental Health Program" that primarily focuses on "theevaluation and treatment of emotional disorders during pregnancy and thepostpartum period,"

according to Emory University's website. Lilly's 2008first quarter grant report shows Emory's Department of Psychiatry received$25,000.The "experts" at Emory include some top pharmaceutical industry shills. Forexample, a link to "Articles" brings up roughly 90 studies and papers thatinclude the co-author Dr Charles Nemeroff. Nemeroff is on an ever-growinglist of academic researchers in the field of psychiatry under investigationby the US Senate Finance Committee for not disclosing millions of dollars ofincome from the makers of psychotropic drugs.Emory's investigation found he was paid more than $960,000 by Paxil maker,GlaxoSmithKline, from 2000 through 2006, but listed less than $35,000 on hisEmory disclosure forms. All totaled, Nemeroff had earnings of $2.8 millionfrom speaking and consulting arrangements with drug companies between 2000and 2007, but only disclosed a fraction of that amount,

according to theSenate Finance Committee reports.On July 23, 2008, Medscape Psychiatry & Mental Health posted an article byNemeroff titled: "Weighing Risk and Benefit for Treatment of Depression inPregnancy and Post Partum". On March 17, 2009, the Medscape website stated:"This article is temporarily unavailable. "Maybe that's because the "top expert," Dr Nemeroff, recently stepped down aschairman of Emory's psychiatry department.************ *<epringle05 > epringle05 (Article sponsored by the Baum, Hedlund,

Aristei & Goldman law firm<http://www.baumhedl undlaw.com/> www.baumhedlundlaw. com)(Evelyn Pringle is a columnist for Scoop Independent News and aninvestigative journalist focused on exposing corruption in government andcorporate America)And who the hell gave them permission to pass this bill in the first place?Irrespective of whether this is your or my country - the bottom line is thatin an allegedly democractic government absolutely nobody may pass any billwithout the consent of those governed, dammit!Ingrid Help Defeat the federal Mother's Act - (Mental Screening of Pregnant Womenand New Mothers) On Monday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the "Mothers Act"without any debate whatsoever. The "plan" is to have it passed by theSenate and handed to America by

Mother's Day.This is your chance to tell Senators NO to the Mother's Act - HR 20 beforethey leave for Easter break. The MOTHERS ACT is a bill which will increase mental health screening ofpregnant women and new mothers. This can lead to women being misdiagnosedand put on psychiatric drugs with their dangerous side effects.Please compose a short letter and FAX as many Senators as you can on thebelow committee. Tell them NO to HR 20 - the "Mothers Act" and tell themwhy you disagree with it.If you don't have access to a fax, please call as many as you can.Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee US Senate StateSenatorPhoneFaxAKMurkowski, Lisa R202-224-6665202-224-5301AZAnMcCain, John R202-224-2235202-228-2862CTDodd, Christopher

D202-224-2823202-224-1083GAIsakson, Johnny R202-224-3643202-228-0724IAHarkin, Tom D202-224-3254202-224-9369KSRoberts, Pat R202-224-4774202-224-3514MAKennedy, Edward D202-224-4543202-224-2417MDMikulski, Barbara D202-224-4654202-224-8858NCBurr, Richard R202-224-3154202-228-2981NCHagan, Kay D202-224-6342202-228-2563NHGregg, Judd R202-224-3324202-224-4952NMBingaman, Jeff D202-224-5521202-224-2852OHBrown, Sherrod D202-224-2315202-228-6321OK, Coburn, Tom R202-224-5754202-224-6008ORMerkley, Jeff D202-224-3753202-228-3997PACasey, Bob

D202-224-6324202-228-0604RIReed, Jack D202-224-4642202-224-4680TNAlexander, Lamar R202-224-4944202-228-3398UTHatch, Orrin R202-224-5251202-224-6331VT Sanders, Bernard I202-224-5141202-228-0776WAMurray, Patty D202-224-2621202-224-0238WYEnzi, Michael R202-224-3424202-228-0359