Posted by yznhymer on November 11, 2004, at 23:31:53 [reposted on November 12, 2004, at 7:46:51 | original URL]
In reply to Drugging children?, posted by mcp on November 11, 2004, at 13:52:18
> *ACTION NEEDED!*
>
> *TELL SENATE TO "JUST SAY NO!" TO UNIVERSAL *
>
> *PSYCHIATRIC SCREENING AND DRUGGING CHILDREN*
>
> *---------------------------------------------------------------------------
> -------------------------------------------------*
>
> · *Senate meets in lame duck session next week to pass appropriations bill.*
>
> · *Bill includes funding for universal mental health screening &
> recommendations for treating children with psychotropic drugs.*
>
> · *Contact your Senators this week and tell them to withdraw this funding.*
>
> · *Click-through to send letter to your Senators in less than a minute.
> <http://www.aapsonline.org/alerts/mhalertlinks.htm>;*
>
> · *Physicians: Print out flyer for your patients!
> <http://www.aapsonline.org/alerts/mhalertlinks.htm>;*
>
> · *Please forward this message to everyone.*
>
> ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
> --------------------------------------------------
>
> The Senate will re-convene next week in a lame duck session with the
> sole purpose of passing an omnibus appropriations bill - work left
> incomplete before the elections.
>
> Included in the current version of the appropriations bill is funding
> for grants to implement universal mental health screening for almost 60
> million children, pregnant women, and adults through schools and
> pre-schools.
>
> The bill would fund initiatives of the "New Freedom Commission on Mental
> Health," including a program designed to subject every school age child
> in this country to psychological testing and recommendations for treatment.
>
> The House has already voted to appropriate $20 million for the scheme,
> and the Senate wants to bump it up to $44 million.
>
> This is a dangerous scheme that will heap even more coercive pressure on
> parents to medicate children with potentially dangerous side effects.
> Further, even the government's own task force has concluded that mental
> health screening does little to prevent suicide.
>
> */Tell the Senate leadership to remove the funding for grants to
> implement the recommendations of the New Freedom Commission in Mental
> Health from the omnibus appropriations bill. /*//
>
> / /
>
> */Take action now and tell the Senate not to fund any programs that call
> for universal mental health screening of our children./*
>
> * *
>
> *Here's how to help:*
>
> *_EVERYONE:_*
>
> *__*
>
> We now have an easy, one-step way for everyone to send a letter to their
> Senators, cour*tesy of the **Health** **Action** **Center** run by
> "Citizens for Health."*
>
> All you need to do is click here.
> <http://www.aapsonline.org/alerts/mhalertlinks.htm>;
>
> Enter your name and address, and a letter will automatically be sent to
> your
>
> Senators, with your signature. It takes about one minute.
>
> *_DOCTORS & HEALTH CARE PROFESSIONALS_*_:_
>
> If you are a doctor, CLICK HERE
> <to" target="_blank">http://www.aapsonline.org/alerts/mhalertlinks.htm>to download a
> one-page flyer to copy and distribute at your office and hospital
> starting today!
>
> Association of American Physicians & Surgeons
>
> 1601 Tucson Blvd. Suite 9
>
> Tucson, AZ 85716
>
> (800) 635-1196
>
> (520) 325-4230 Fax
>
> www.aapsonline.orgI question taking this post at face value. If you check out the aapsonline.org website... the group behind the campaign to stop this provision... you will find that they have a pretty right wing ideology. Opposing the right to universal health care, and asserting that human life begins at conception (i.e. antiabortion) are two positions contained in their resolutions. You may or may not agree with them.
The point I want to make is that I wouldn't take this groups assertions about this provision as objective or even accurate. In fact, the notion that this measure would result in mandatory mental health medication for children sounds preposterous on its face, and smacks of the kind of distortion put out by ideological groups all too often lately. I suspect the measure probably provides funds for mental health screening of children and makes badly needed mental health resources available for children currently without access to them. This is a far cry from how the measure is described here. Perhaps I'm wrong, but I'd do my own research on this measure before taking this group's word for what it does.
poster:yznhymer
thread:414914
URL: http://www.dr-bob.org/babble/social/20041105/msgs/414921.html