The Child Medication Safety Act

July 9, 2004

A WORLD WITHOUT PSYCHIATRY, From the Boston Globe: Kennedy ties up drug bill By Jessica E. Vascellaro, Globe Correspondent | July 2, 2004WASHINGTON -- A bill banning schools from coercing parents into putting their children on psychotropic drugs, passed with near-universal support in the House, is being tied up in a Senate committee by Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who contends it requires more study.Supporters of the bill, which sailed through the House 425 to 1, said it will help prevent an epidemic of children on drugs like Ritalin and Prozac, and that Kennedy is being influenced by his longstanding ties to health and pharmaceutical associations, which contend the bill will discourage the diagnosis of mental illnesses that could be easily treated.The Child Medication Safety Act has sat in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions all year.

Proponents say Senate leaders never told them why the bill had not come up for a vote, but this week Kennedy, who is the committee's ranking member, confirmed to the Globe that he is seeking to delay its consideration.''This is a complex question that demands a serious study," Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, said in a statement. ''Until we know the extent of the problem, any further action is unwarranted."The bill was prompted by complaints from parents that school officials were threatening to keep their children out of class unless they took behavior-altering medication. About 11 million schoolchildren and adolescents took prescription drugs for mental health in 2002, and the number is rising.The bill denies federal funds to schools that fail to implement a policy to ''protect children and their parents from being coerced into administering a controlled substance in order to attend school, and for other

purposes," such as extracurricular activities.Among the drugs it targets are behavioral drugs such as Adderall and Ritalin and antidepressants such as Prozac and Paxil. Prozac is the only antidepressant approved by the Federal Drug Administration for people under 18, and the FDA is expected this summer to release a study on whether antidepressants increase the risk of suicide.If the bill fails to make it onto a tight Senate scheduled squeezed by two national conventions and an August recess, it would have to return to the House next year.Representative Max Burns, Republican of Georgia and sponsor of the bill in the House, said that he will meet with the House leadership next week to explore ways to pressure the Senate to bring the bill to the floor.''It's hard to be optimistic because it has been there for over a year," he said. ''[but] we need to find a way to shake this bill loose."Kennedy's office

said that it is important to separate the roles of schools and doctors but that any legislation limiting schools' ability to push for treatment of children with mental-health issues should wait until further study of the benefits and detriments of psychiatric drugs.Libby Nealis, director of public policy for the National Association of School Psychologists, said that her organization has been fighting the law and is confident that it will not pass.Nealis called the bill a ''knee-jerk reaction to anecdotal stories" and said it would deter schools from discussing crucial mental health information with parents.The battle over schools' role in recommending psychiatric drugs has been fought on the state level for years. Nine states have already passed or introduced legislation prohibiting schools from threatening to limit children's participation in classes or activities if they do not go on

medication.Personal stories have sparked political activism. Sheila Matthews of New Canaan, Conn., said she was told by a school psychologist that her son had attention deficit disorder and that psychiatric drugs was his only alternative. In response, she helped found Parents for Label & Drug Free Education, an organization advocating parents' rights to refuse medical treatment for their children. Ablechild now has almost 200 members and has launched a petition supporting the bill.Matthews said that she has frequently contacted Kennedy's office about the bill and believes his appeal for research is a cover for his support for health and pharmaceutical groups. Since 1999, Kennedy has received $171,601 in campaign contributions from health professionals and $97,050 from the pharmaceutical and health-product industry, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.But Dr. Harold Koplewicz, director of the New York

University Child Study Center, said Kennedy's opposition is warranted: The bill would undermine the detection of children with mental health problems, a pressing concern when 80 percent of cases go undetected.''There is no medicine in all of pediatrics that has been tested as many times as Ritalin," he said. ''We have definitive evidence that it's an effective treatment."The greater danger comes not from overmedication but from failing to detect mental problems in children. ''We are doing a horrible job, and this bill will encourage less identification," he said. ''This bill is offensive." © Copyright 2004 The New York Times CompanyFrom Mike Kaplan:The Child Medication Safety Act has already passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 425-1. If this bill is passed by the Senate it will be a big blow against psychiatric totalitarianism.Ted Kennedy is STOPPING (he says 'delay to

give it more consideration') The Child Medication Safety Act from becoming law. Read the article below. The issue was clear enough to 425 of our elected representatives, they didn't need to 'delay' it. They acted. It's time Ted Kennedy does the same thing.Here's where you can do to make a huge impact:1. Call, fax, or email Ted Kennedy and tell him that you want The Child Medication Safety Act to pass. No parent should be coerced into drugging their kid. Calls and faxes are the best. When you call, an aide will answer the phone. Tell the aide why your calling and who you are. It will take 2 minutes. The flood of calls will have an impact.Phone: 1(202) 224-4543 Fax: (202) 224-2417Emails have far less significance. The best is to call, fax and email. Email: kennedy.senate.gov/contact.html2. Call, fax, or email again a few days later.3. Pass this email and Call to

Action to your friends. Encourage them to call Kennedy and get him to pass this bill.Thanks for your help,Mike Kaplan

July 10, 2004

The bill will stay where it is until/unless Kennedy gets paid more for it to pass.

Hugs, Jacy

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Kelly Wortkoetter [kellykebby]Friday, July 09, 2004 08:50 Subject: The Child Medication Safety Act

A WORLD WITHOUT PSYCHIATRY, From the Boston Globe: Kennedy ties up drug bill By Jessica E. Vascellaro, Globe Correspondent | July 2, 2004WASHINGTON -- A bill banning schools from coercing parents into putting their children on psychotropic drugs, passed with near-universal support in the House, is being tied up in a Senate committee by Senator Edward M. Kennedy, who contends it requires more study.Supporters of the bill, which sailed through the House 425 to 1, said it will help prevent an epidemic of children on drugs like Ritalin and Prozac, and that Kennedy is being influenced by his longstanding ties to health and pharmaceutical associations, which contend the bill will discourage the diagnosis of mental illnesses that could be easily treated.The Child Medication Safety Act has sat in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions all year. Proponents say Senate leaders never told them why the bill had not come up for a vote, but this week Kennedy, who is the committee's ranking member, confirmed to the Globe that he is seeking to delay its consideration.''This is a complex question that demands a serious study," Kennedy, Democrat of Massachusetts, said in a statement. ''Until we know the extent of the problem, any further action is unwarranted."The bill was prompted by complaints from parents that school officials were threatening to keep their children out of class unless they took behavior-altering medication. About 11 million schoolchildren and adolescents took prescription drugs for mental health in 2002, and the number is rising.The bill denies federal funds to schools that fail to implement a policy to ''protect children and their parents from being coerced into administering a controlled substance in order to attend school, and for other purposes," such as extracurricular activities.Among the drugs it targets are behavioral drugs such as Adderall and Ritalin and antidepressants such as Prozac and Paxil. Prozac is the only antidepressant approved by the Federal Drug Administration for people under 18, and the FDA is expected this summer to release a study on whether antidepressants increase the risk of suicide.If the bill fails to make it onto a tight Senate scheduled squeezed by two national conventions and an August recess, it would have to return to the House next year.Representative Max Burns, Republican of Georgia and sponsor of the bill in the House, said that he will meet with the House leadership next week to explore ways to pressure the Senate to bring the bill to the floor.''It's hard to be optimistic because it has been there for over a year," he said. ''[but] we need to find a way to shake this bill loose."Kennedy's office said that it is important to separate the roles of schools and doctors but that any legislation limiting schools' ability to push for treatment of children with mental-health issues should wait until further study of the benefits and detriments of psychiatric drugs.Libby Nealis, director of public policy for the National Association of School Psychologists, said that her organization has been fighting the law and is confident that it will not pass.Nealis called the bill a ''knee-jerk reaction to anecdotal stories" and said it would deter schools from discussing crucial mental health information with parents.The battle over schools' role in recommending psychiatric drugs has been fought on the state level for years. Nine states have already passed or introduced legislation prohibiting schools from threatening to limit children's participation in classes or activities if they do not go on medication.Personal stories have sparked political activism. Sheila Matthews of New Canaan, Conn., said she was told by a school psychologist that her son had attention deficit disorder and that psychiatric drugs was his only alternative. In response, she helped found Parents for Label & Drug Free Education, an organization advocating parents' rights to refuse medical treatment for their children. Ablechild now has almost 200 members and has launched a petition supporting the bill.Matthews said that she has frequently contacted Kennedy's office about the bill and believes his appeal for research is a cover for his support for health and pharmaceutical groups. Since 1999, Kennedy has received $171,601 in campaign contributions from health professionals and $97,050 from the pharmaceutical and health-product industry, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.But Dr. Harold Koplewicz, director of the New York University Child Study Center, said Kennedy's opposition is warranted: The bill would undermine the detection of children with mental health problems, a pressing concern when 80 percent of cases go undetected.''There is no medicine in all of pediatrics that has been tested as many times as Ritalin," he said. ''We have definitive evidence that it's an effective treatment."The greater danger comes not from overmedication but from failing to detect mental problems in children. ''We are doing a horrible job, and this bill will encourage less identification," he said. ''This bill is offensive." ) Copyright 2004 The New York Times CompanyFrom Mike Kaplan:The Child Medication Safety Act has already passed the U.S. House of Representatives by a vote of 425-1. If this bill is passed by the Senate it will be a big blow against psychiatric totalitarianism.Ted Kennedy is STOPPING (he says 'delay to give it more consideration') The Child Medication Safety Act from becoming law. Read the article below. The issue was clear enough to 425 of our elected representatives, they didn't need to 'delay' it. They acted. It's time Ted Kennedy does the same thing.Here's where you can do to make a huge impact:1. Call, fax, or email Ted Kennedy and tell him that you want The Child Medication Safety Act to pass. No parent should be coerced into drugging their kid. Calls and faxes are the best. When you call, an aide will answer the phone. Tell the aide why your calling and who you are. It will take 2 minutes. The flood of calls will have an impact.Phone: 1(202) 224-4543 Fax: (202) 224-2417Emails have far less significance. The best is to call, fax and email. Email: kennedy.senate.gov/contact.html2. Call, fax, or email again a few days later.3. Pass this email and Call to Action to your friends. Encourage them to call Kennedy and get him to pass this bill.Thanks for your help,Mike Kaplan