[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 80 (Tuesday, May 25, 2010)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E938]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                          MENTAL HEALTH MONTH

                                 ______
                                 

                               speech of

                             HON. RON PAUL

                                of texas

                    in the house of representatives

                          Monday, May 24, 2010

  Mr. PAUL. Madam Speaker, I voted against H. Res. 1258 designating the 
month of May as National Mental Health Month to draw attention to the 
threat to liberty posed by proposals to perform mandatory mental 
evaluations of all schoolchildren without parental consent.
  The New Freedom Commission on Mental Health has recommended that the 
federal and state governments work toward the implementation of a 
comprehensive system of mental-health screening for all Americans. The 
commission recommends that universal or mandatory mental-health 
screening first be implemented in public schools as a prelude to 
expanding it to the general public. However, neither the commission's 
report nor any related mental-health screening proposal requires 
parental consent before a child is subjected to mental-health 
screening. Federally-funded universal or mandatory mental-health 
screening in schools without parental consent could lead to labeling 
more children as ``ADD'' or ``hyperactive'' and thus force more 
children to take psychotropic drugs, such as Ritalin, against their 
parents' wishes.
  Too many children are suffering from being prescribed psychotropic 
drugs for nothing more than children's typical rambunctious behavior. 
According to Medco Health Solutions, more than 2.2 million children are 
receiving more than one psychotropic drug at one time. In fact, 
according to Medico Trends, in 2003, total spending on psychiatric 
drugs for children exceeded spending on antibiotics or asthma 
medication
  Many children have suffered harmful side effects from using 
psychotropic drugs. Some of the possible side effects include mania, 
violence, dependence, and weight gain. Yet, parents are already being 
threatened with child abuse charges if they resist efforts to drug 
their children. Imagine how much easier it will be to drug children 
against their parents' wishes if a federally-funded mental-health 
screener makes the recommendation.
  Universal or mandatory mental-health screening could also provide a 
justification for stigmatizing children from families that support 
traditional values. Even the authors of mental-health diagnosis manuals 
admit that mental-health diagnoses are subjective and based on social 
constructions. Therefore, it is all too easy for a psychiatrist to 
label a person's disagreement with the psychiatrist's political beliefs 
a mental disorder. For example, a federally-funded school violence 
prevention program lists ``intolerance'' as a mental problem that may 
lead to school violence. Because ``intolerance'' is often a code word 
for believing in traditional values, children who share their parents' 
values could be labeled as having mental problems and a risk of causing 
violence. If the mandatory mental-health screening program applies to 
adults, everyone who believes in traditional values could have his or 
her beliefs stigmatized as a sign of a mental disorder. Taxpayer 
dollars should not support programs that may label those who adhere to 
traditional values as having a ``mental disorder.''
  In order to protect our nation's children from mandatory mental 
health screening, I have introduced the Parental Consent Act, H.R. 
2218. This bill forbids federal funds from being used for any universal 
or mandatory mental-health screening of students without the express, 
written, voluntary, informed consent of their parents or legal 
guardians. This bill protects the fundamental right of parents to 
direct and control the upbringing and education of their children. I 
hope all my colleagues will co-sponsor H.R. 2218.

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