[garandgal]

The commission said, "Each year, young children are expelled from preschools and childcare facilities for severely disruptive behaviors and emotional disorders." Schools, the panel concluded, are in a "key position" to screen the 52 million students and 6 million adults who work at the schools.

This is just horrifying, really. Preschool children? So a precocious youngster will just need to be "calmed down" a little; with drugs that have not been tested as to their longterm effects on small children.

Any guesses as to the "screening" guys? I bet it includes "so how do Mommy and Daddy discipline you?"; "does Daddy hunt with guns?"; "do Mommy and Daddy ever yell at each other?"

Pediatricians have already tried this; and folks have changed doctors because of it. When the liberals in public schools get involved, that will be another story altogether.

[Ken H]

The panel found that "despite their prevalence, mental disorders often go undiagnosed" and recommended comprehensive mental health screening for "consumers of all ages," including preschool children.

The commission said, "Each year, young children are expelled from preschools and childcare facilities for severely disruptive behaviors and emotional disorders."

Schools, the panel concluded, are in a "key position" to screen the 52 million students and 6 million adults who work at the schools.

This reminds me of the flap that occured when the global warming report was released. It caught the Administration temporarily off guard, but did no real damage.

The reason it did no damage is that the Adm. distanced itself from the report and I think pretty much ignored it. AFAIK, none of its recommendations were carried out.

There are parts of this report that are worrisome, such as a Federal program for mental health screening of all kids in the schools.

Will intrusive questions about the family be asked such as gun ownership, smoking, and drinking?

Will ex TSA screeners be retrained as Federal mental health screeners? (only half joking)

The point is that the President's people ought to get on top of this and ditch the idea of mass screenings loud and clear.

If they do, then I don't think there'll be much of a problem.

[Peach]

This had better be satire, until Bush is thinking he would like to see the radical, malignant, narcissistic leftists medication. Then I support this.

[RobFromGa]

America doesn't need another test for mental illness- we already have a big one scheduled for the first Tuesday this November.

We could just dispense free coupons for mental health services when you check 'Rat on any of the questions.

[eclectic]

This necessary measure is long overdue - judging from the recent polls nearly half of the country is losing it!

[leprechaun9]

I await the test results of the 535 members of Congress, before testing any member of the public!

[ATOMIC_PUNK]

[MadIvan]

President Reagan would NEVER have done anything like this.

Regards, Ivan

[I_killed_kenny]

how about screening the "conservative" who came up with this idea?

[rintense]

Bush cannot be serious... this is just crazy.

[savedbygrace]

Well, the schools have been so helpful in diagnosing ADHD and forcing Ritalin down the throats of students everywhere.

This program promises to expand their reach much farther. Imagine being labeled as having a psychiatric condition at age 7, and it follows you for the rest of your life, just because the school gets federal money for making that diagnosis.

This proposal needs to be fought with everything we have.

[listenhillary]

Bump to peruse and stare with slack jawed amazement at the STUPIDITY of this move.

[Auntie Mame]

A related article from 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."

[taxed2death]

Great. Uncle Sham will be the biggest drug pusher the world has ever known.

[Born Conservative]

The New Freedom Initiative, according to a progress report, seeks to integrate mentally ill patients fully into the community by providing "services in the community, rather than institutions," the British Medical Journal reported.

Isn't that what is done now? De-institutionalization is why many cities have a "homeless" problem.

[FITZ]

President Bush plans to unveil next month a sweeping mental health initiative that recommends screening for every citizen and promotes the use of expensive antidepressants and antipsychotic drugs favored by supporters of the administration.

I hope this isn't true.

[CDHart]

What on earth is wrong with Bush? This is something that LBJ would have proposed, or FDR -- an awful idea.

Carolyn

[JesseHousman]

Bush to screen population for mental illness

To save time it would be wise to screen the moronic Congress of The United States. That body is larded with candidates for straitjackets on both sides of the aisles.

[BureaucratusMaximus]

Eli Lilly, manufacturer of olanzapine, one of the drugs recommended in the plan, has multiple ties to the Bush administration, BMJ says. The elder President Bush was a member of Lilly's board of directors and President Bush appointed Lilly's chief executive officer, Sidney Taurel, to the Homeland Security Council.

Just highlighting this important piece of info....since the regular crowd of groupthink cheerleaders seem to be ignoring it. I know it pisses me off. This is big big bucks were talking about here. Lilly's atypical anti-psychotic, Prozac (Fluoxetine), depending on who is buying it can go for $5 to $8 a pill. Again...the government should stay out of healthcare...except for taking care its Veterans and its Military.

[joesnuffy]

Once diagnosed....there go many of your rights....

How do you take away rights....just get one of your Orwellian mental health 'professionals' to
issue a diagnosis...consistent with the law needed to take away those rights....