Drugs & Mental Health Screening for children in the U.S. - Will UK follow

[Guest guest]

Some of you may know that there are attempts to do this in the U.K.,

i.e screen our kids for potential mental health probs. I am sure

that the " sure start " programs are part and parcel of this.

Basically if your child is acting up in school, steals or throws

things s/he will be put on a register. Where does it stop? Drugs??

Glad i dont live in the United States, but it wont be long before

this is here.

http://www.opednews.com/articles/opedne_sue_weib_051215_psy_screening

_and_ma.htm

Dec 15, 2005

The Genesis of President Bush's New Freedom Commission on

Mental Health

by Sue Weibert

by Sue Weibert

Screening for mental illness is the most controversial topic

concerning mental health today. Various government entities, private

foundations, organizations, think tanks and universities, all

flanked by cunning public relations firms, are hard at work trying

to make mental health screening as common as a dental checkup.

Despite public outrage over screening, these entities are working

feverishly to establish this system. With so much clamor of

disagreement for such a program, why, then, do these entities push

forward with such ferocity? This article reveals exactly how this

all got started, who's really behind " the big push, " and how

President Bush was tricked into establishing what might be the most

detrimental program in the history of mankind.

In 2002, President W. Bush established the New Freedom

Commission on Mental Health (NFC) and charged it with the mission of

reviewing mental health care in the United States. The following

year the NFC released its findings and recommendations.

The report called for the establishment of an ambitious, Orwellian

plan to screen every American for mental illness, from pre-natal to

the elderly. The NFC recommended that screening is to be followed

by " treatment " and " support, " but these help-oriented euphemisms are

a major cover-up for barbaric psychiatric methodologies that

include, but are not limited to, powerful, mind-altering drugs to

Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT) – ultimately proven to create

zombies, mass murderers and even death in those subjected to these

kinds of " treatments. " Sound comforting?

So, then, why would anyone want to forward the progress of such a

system?

The answer is the same for all of the horrific things committed

against the people since the beginning of time – money, power and

control.

So who stands to gain from widespread screening? To answer this

question, one need only to look at these sister programs: the Texas

Medication Algorithm Project (TMAP) and Columbia University's

TeenScreen - both were recommended in the NFC's final report

as " model programs " . How did these two make the cut when hundreds of

public, private and faith-based programs are available to deal with

mental health issues? Finding out who lobbied for their inclusion,

we quickly see who stands to gain billions of dollars, reputation

and power if these programs are implemented.

What is TeenScreen?

The TeenScreen Program is a controversial mental health screening

program developed by Columbia University's Child Psychiatry's

Research Department.

The ultimate goal of the Columbia TeenScreen Program is to establish

screening programs throughout our nation's communities so that all

children can be screened and treated for mental illness.

Establishing the program in every school in the nation, and possibly

the rest of the world, is clearly the objective.

Columbia University is not alone in this desire for TeenScreen's

universal acceptance and advance into the schools. The National

Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), billed as the voice of the

mentally ill, is collaborating on achieving that goal. NAMI is,

itself, controversial because of extensive pharmaceutical company

funding. While NAMI claims to be a grassroots organization

structured to benefit those diagnosed as mentally ill, its critics

claim that NAMI's main activity is to spread fraudulent information

about what " mental illness " actually is in order to claim more

victims to treatment and psychotropic drug prescriptions. There are

also strong allegations that NAMI is lobbying on behalf of

pharmaceutical companies, which give NAMI millions in funding every

year.

At a conference given this year, supported in part by pharmaceutical

manufacturer, AstraZeneca, TeenScreen reported that 80% of the teens

identified through the use of their screening tool " are not truly at

risk. "

This presentation also included the fact that 24% of the referred

students were then prescribed medication.

What is TMAP?

TMAP is a medication protocol for the treatment of mental illness

that originated in Texas when Bush was governor of the state.

TMAP set uniform guidelines for treatment of certain psychiatric-

deemed " disorders " using the " newer, " brand name psychiatric

medications and culminating with Electro-Convulsive Therapy (ECT) -

better known as " shock treatment " - as the final solution when

medications are judged as being ineffective.

No other therapy or treatment of any kind is included in the

algorithm (problem-solving procedure) of TMAP; it is strictly

medication and ECT. This chart is intended to ensure that in every

location, from California to DC, a person with the symptoms of a

psychiatric " disorder, " which could be anything from schizophrenia

and bi-polar disorders to major depressive disorder, will receive

the same treatment – namely, a prescribed sequence of brand-name

drugs and even shock treatment.

When TMAP was developed, with help from the pharmaceutical industry,

the most expensive, newer-generation antipsychotic drugs -

called " atypicals " - were the ones to make the list. In TMAP, the

older drugs and generic drugs, which are less expensive, have been

completely omitted.

Based on TMAP, before a drug can be prescribed by a state physician

for someone in the state system, it has to be on the TMAP list. It

is then no surprise that states who have implemented TMAP are going

broke due to the costs of these high-priced medications. No

surprise, either, is that the pharmaceutical company coffers are

growing in proportion to the states' increasing financial woes.

Key Players in the NFC, TMAP and TeenScreen

In 2002, Bush appointed F. Hogan, Ph.D., the director of the

Ohio Department of Mental Health, to chair his NFC. Hogan has close

ties to both TeenScreen, TMAP and with pharmaceutical companies.

Hogan is a member of TeenScreen's Advisory Council and a member-at-

large of the National Association of State Mental Health Program

Directors (NASMHPD).

Hogan's resume includes his connection to TMAP. He is the past

president of both NASMHPD and the NASMHPD Research Institute (NRI),

and is currently on the NRI Board of Directors. Both entities are

heavily supported by Janssen Pharmaceuticals and Eli Lilly

through " educational grants. "

Through NASMHPD, the pharmaceutical companies had to influence only

fifty key people in order to introduce TMAP to every state in the

nation. , a whistleblower in Pennsylvania, had this to

say about NASMHPD:

" Janssen's influence of state Mental Health Directors was not

limited to NASMHPD funded events. Janssen also formed " Advisory

Boards " comprised entirely of State Mental Health Directors and

regularly treated these " Advisory Board " members to trips and

conferences, with all expenses paid by

Janssen. "

About Parexel, had this to say: " If you click on their ADAP

[AIDS Drug Assistance Programs] Report and Medicaid Pharmacy

Bulletin you will find other state level Directors participating.

Different drug companies pay for each publication. What is

significant here is that these publications are fluff pieces

generated after `advisory board' meetings in various locations

throughout the country. The Directors are treated to trips, first

class accommodations and other perks in exchange for showing up and

listening to a spiel. The PA director, Karp, admitted that

the sessions were attended by Janssen sales personnel who directed

the course of the meetings. " continued: " Also significant is

the fact that several members of the New Freedom Commission attended

these marketing sessions, including Hogan, [] Mayberg from

California and Brandenburg from Nevada. Janssen had multiple

cracks at 3 of 22 NFC members, including the chairman, during the

time the NFC recommendations were being formed. "

Laurie Flynn was the Executive Director of NAMI but left in December

of 2000 after a no-confidence vote from the board. She was then

hired by Columbia to co-direct its Carmel Hill Center and eventually

to direct the TeenScreen Program. She had been with Columbia

University for just over a year when the NFC was formed. Flynn, well

connected to pharmaceutical companies through NAMI, now works

diligently to expand TeenScreen through every possible avenue. But

she has even more connections.

Hogan and Flynn

Hogan and Flynn have known each other for some time. Prior to

Hogan's

appointment to the NFC and Flynn's hiring by Columbia, they

collaborated on at least one other project, the " Expert Consensus

Guideline Series: Treatment of Schizophrenia 1999 " . And the purpose

of this project? To establish uniform medication guidelines for

schizophrenia. Sound familiar?

The " Expert Consensus Guideline " is explained by

: " Essentially, TMAP opted to " establish " new drugs as the best

drugs for various illnesses by surveying the opinions of doctors and

psychiatrists of TMAP's own choosing. No hard science, no patients,

no study review, and no clinical trials – just the " Expert Opinions "

of persons TMAP elected to survey. "

Hogan, Flynn and several members from the TMAP Project in Texas took

part in this " Schizophrenia Consensus. " In agreement with TMAP

protocols the newer, expensive, atypical, antipsychotic drugs ended

up as the drugs of choice in the " consensus. "

NAMI was not only given credit for their collaboration on the

overall TMAP project, but 51 representatives from chapters of NAMI

are listed as " Policy Experts " in the " Expert Consensus Guideline

Series for Schizophrenia " .

This consensus was generously supported exclusively by 6

pharmaceutical companies: Eli Lilly and Co., Janssen Pharmaceutica,

Inc., Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation, Ortho-McNeil

Pharmaceutical, Pfizer, Inc. and Zeneca Pharmaceuticals.

The NFC is Born

By 2002, Flynn, Hogan, TMAP, TeenScreen, big pharma and NAMI, were

allied in their plan to implement widespread screening. The next

step? Bush's New Freedom Commission on Mental Health (NFC).

While Hogan is chiefly known for his appointment as head of Bush's

NFC, other factors have not been widely known. How he gained that

important appointment and the key role he played in getting both

TeenScreen and TMAP listed in the recommendations as " model

programs " can all be explained by Laurie Flynn.

At the 2004 American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry's

(AACAP) annual meeting, Laurie Flynn made an eye-opening statement

while giving a presentation on TeenScreen. She admitted her own

covert role in creating the NFC by inserting a few words into Bush's

campaign speech prior to his election. Once Bush was " on the record "

that he would form a commission, Flynn and others coerced President

Bush into keeping that " promise. " In the same presentation, she said

that Hogan's appointment as the chair of the NFC was " not entirely

by accident. "

Flynn stated: " ...one of the things that we did here was to build on

President Bush, not a major promoter of these kinds of initiatives,

but to build on actually an opportunity that came to me while I was

still at NAMI.

I had worked for many years with Senator Pete Domenici and

Wellstone around the parity issue. And Senator Domenici hosted

Candidate Bush, in New Mexico, where Candidate Bush declared his

support for parity. This was as far as we could tell the last time

that he has supported parity, - [laughter] - but he supported it

that day in Albuquerque in front of the media, and I was one of a

couple of people invited to add some remarks to his speech. And I

was able, with a colleague, whose idea it was, it wasn't even my

idea, in fact, I tried to talk him out of it, I'll confess, I said

to him, `What the heck good is a Commission? " He was, at that time,

Commissioner of Mental Health in Virginia and said, `Listen, they

have, ya know, beat me up with Commissions in Virginia, this could

be good!'. So, we put into this speech, and it survived the edit

process, a line that Candidate Bush spoke, `And if I'm elected, I

will convene a Commission, to look at why our public sector and our

mental health system are not able to do the job our citizens

deserve,' or some such....anyways, he said `I'm havin' a

Commission'. We had him on the record, once he was elected it took

awhile, alot of r-e-m-i-n-d-e-r-s had to come to him that he had

said this, we had to keep pushing this message and ultimately

Senator Dominici had to r-e-m-i-n-d him that he had promised this.

But indeed, a Commission was convened... "

Flynn went on to say, " ...and not entirely by accident, uhmm, Mike

Hogan from Ohio, the Commissioner of Mental Health in Ohio and one

of our most distinguished Commissioners, was appointed as Chair. "

Hogan was now in an ideal position to get TeenScreen and TMAP

inserted into the New Freedom Commission recommendations. In

December of 2002, Flynn plugged the TeenScreen program in a

presentation to Hogan and members of the NFC. The result of their

collaboration is that TeenScreen and TMAP both received prominent

mention as " model programs " in the NFC recommendations to the

president. This gave the TeenScreen Program the highly

desirable " third party credibility " that their PR firms were looking

for.

TeenScreen's public relations firm seized upon this as a marketing

ploy and to this day crows that " TeenScreen has been recommended by

the NFC. "

Pushing the NFC Recommendations

Rabin Strategic Partners, Inc., one of TeenScreen's hired PR

companies, put together a key publication called, " Catch Them Before

They Fall; How to Implement Mental Health Screening Programs for

Youth as Recommended by the President's New Freedom Commission on

Mental Health " . Hogan and Flynn's intention on mental health

screening becomes clear in the " Forward " of this publication, where

it is stated, " It will take the effort of people like you to make

mental health screenings for youth as commonplace as other

preventive health efforts like hearing and vision screenings. " When

states were slow in coming up with their own mental health action

plans, per the NFC recommendations, TeenScreen decided a little push

was needed. So along with Rabin, they sent out that publication and

a copy of a " model resolution " that they wrote, to key players in

all the states. Of course, TeenScreen was mentioned in that model

resolution.

Flynn was quoted at that 2004 AACAP Meeting as saying, " One of the

things that we did was to mail a copy of our report " Catch Them

Before They Fall " and we mailed a model resolution, ahh, to all the

50 states, we sent this as a very friendly, `Here's some information

you might like to use since you're on a health committee' – we

mailed it only to people who were in key committees – `you might

like to have this resolution, to introduce the notion that every

child should be screened for mental illness, at least once in their

youth, in order to identify mental illness and prevent suicide.' So

we offered them up some language and some tools, and a surprising

number of folks, in fact, introduced it exactly the way we sent it

and made some real strides with it. "

TeenScreen now had their program specifically mentioned in

individual state mental health resolutions. States could then apply

for federal funding and begin the task of expanding TeenScreen's

goal to screen every child for mental illness.

The Pharmaceutical Industry

The pharmaceutical companies are positioned to gain billions in

profit from TMAP and TeenScreen. Naturally, they have been ready and

able to help with funding every step of the way. Who else would be

in a better position to `help all those poor children' that were now

labeled with so-called " disorders " by TeenScreen? Who else had

medications, at the ready, per TMAP recommendations? The NFC

recommendations opened the door for the pharmaceutical industry.

Eli Lilly was quick to recognize the efforts of Mike Hogan by

announcing the winners of their " 2004 Helping Move Lives Forward

Reintegration Awards. "

First-place winners received a $5,000 cash contribution " to their

respective institutions to further the success of their programs. "

Lilly's press release announced: " A First Place Lifetime Achievement

Award will be presented to Hogan, PhD, chair of President

Bush's New Freedom Commission on Mental Illness…Dr. Hogan has

[since] delivered over 75 presentations urging for the

implementation of goals set forth in the Commission's Report. "

In looking over some of those " 75 presentations, " it was found that

these conferences were heavily funded by the pharmaceutical

industry, who also traditionally pay for the keynote speaker. The

Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PhRMA) and

NASMHPD were heavy contributors as well.

Ohio's Mental Health System under Hogan – Will the entire U.S

follow?

What is Hogan's personal stance on mental health screening? He would

have preferred universal mental health screenings for the

population, but he acknowledged that " science and public opinion "

have not advanced to the point where universal mental health

screening is acceptable. Hogan has expressed his frustration that

implementations of the NFC recommendations have not proceeded

faster. He conceded that " we in the field, would have an easier time

convincing the public of the need for at least broader, if not

universal, screening if the CMHS (Center for Mental Health Services)

had published the NFC Action Plan that has been delayed. " CMHS is

the federal agency within the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health

Services Administration (SAMHSA) that is charged with the efforts to

implement the recommendations of the NFC.

The following two stories indicate what has happened in Ohio under

Hogan's watch and what might happen in other states if Hogan, Flynn,

NAMI and the drug companies achieve their aims.

Drugging Babies in Ohio

In a Columbus Dispatch article dated April 25, 2005, the headlines

read, " EVEN BABIES GETTING TREATED AS MENTALLY ILL; Prescriptions on

the rise even though they haven't been tested on children " .

The Dispatch reported, " Nearly 40,000 Ohio children on Medicaid were

taking drugs for anxiety, depression, delusions, hyperactivity and

violent behavior as of July [2004]. For the entire year, the Ohio

Department of Job and Family Services paid out about $65.5 million

for kids' mental-health drugs. "

They also reported that 696 Ohio children, ages newborn to 3 years

old, received sedatives and powerful, mood-altering, mental-health

drugs through Medicaid in July of 2004.

Valid research shows that ages 0-3 are the most critical years for

the development of children. Combine that data with the recent FDA

black box warnings on these drugs that list the physical side

effects ranging from headaches, nausea and weight gain to heart

attacks, liver damage, suicidal ideations and sudden death.

Hogan's views on all this? The Dispatch reports, " The biggest public-

health crisis facing the state and nation is the number of children

with mental illness who fail to receive any care or treatment, " said

Hogan, director of the Ohio Department of Mental

Health. " It's true children are more likely to get medication than

counseling or other behavioral therapy if they go to their

pediatrician or family doctor. But at the end of the day, meds are

quite safe and effective. "

Medicaid Funding Crisis in Ohio

Medicaid spending in Ohio currently accounts for 37 percent of the

state's $49-billion budget. Ohio is spending $2 billion this year

alone on prescription drugs - a 94-percent increase since 2001. In

1999, under Hogan's direction, Ohio's version of the costly TMAP

program was implemented in the state. It's called OMAP, which was

put into place in conjunction with Janssen Pharmaceutica, Eli Lilly

and AstraZeneca. The Ohio Department of Mental Health and Ohio-NAMI

were two of the primary movers of this program.

Medicaid is the primary funding source for mental health services

with public funds currently accounting for 63% of all national

mental health spending. The October 23, 2005 San Francisco Chronicle

reported that, " Nationwide, Medicaid programs purchase an estimated

60 to 75 percent of antipsychotic drugs. "

The cost to Medicaid for reimbursement of prescription drugs has

grown faster than any other area of the program. More specifically,

according to a report issued by the United States Surgeon General,

expenditures for psychiatric drugs are among the fastest-rising

costs, currently representing an estimated 20 percent of Medicaid's

total payment for pharmaceuticals. For Ohio, in 2002, psychotropic

drugs were 23 percent of their Medicaid pharmacy budget. Typically,

the costs for psychiatric drugs out-strip the costs for heart,

asthma, antibiotics and blood pressure medications combined.

According to the National Pharmaceutical Council, Ohio has been

rated one of the top 10 states in terms of the highest amount of

Medicaid reimbursement for prescription drugs. Those 10 states

alone, account for 58 percent of the total Medicaid drug payment

amount ($7.9 billion out of $13.7 billion), with two antipsychotics -

Zyprexa and Risperdal - representing almost 20 percent of all of

the prescriptions.

The Washington Post, on June 16, 2005, reported a statement by House

Energy and Commerce Committee Chair, Joe Barton (R-Texas), about the

current conditions of Medicaid throughout the nation. He said, " We

have reached a point where there just are not enough taxes or

taxpayer money to keep Medicaid going, " adding, " Medicaid eventually

will bankrupt every state in the nation. "

With the rising Medicaid expenses to state budgets, states are

scrambling to rein in costs and meet budgetary constraints. Ohio

Representative, Barrett, expressed concerns for these

issues: " Ohio's Medicaid spending on drugs for mental health, needs

a Task Force and an Oversight Commission to investigate the spike in

Medicaid spending on antipsychotic drugs. "

In an interview with WIMA-AM Radio in November 2005, Hogan had this

to say on OMAP in Ohio: " …frankly it didn't work very well for us

and we've discontinued it…..Increasingly it's clear that the

scientists don't have pretty good information to give the doctors

about which works best……So we thought, and frankly I thought at one

point in time that this kind of algorithm where you'd give the

docs, `Try this first, try this second,' would be a good idea but it

just hasn't worked that well. " That must have been a pretty

expensive lesson in Ohio.

Today and Tomorrow

This is not a complete report on what is happening today regarding

the implementation of these programs. Due to the secrecy employed by

TeenScreen and the various hidden channels by which TMAP is being

introduced into government and private treatment plans, it is

impossible to report the complete story.

At the time of this writing, TeenScreen claims 460 active sites in

42

states. As of August 2004, TMAP had been implemented in at least the

following locations on a state government basis: Nevada; Ohio;

Florida; Pennsylvania; South Carolina; New Mexico; Illinois;

Georgia; Kentucky; Washington, D.C. and California.

The final chapter to this report will be written in the upcoming

years and perhaps decades. Children will be screened for mental

illness or they won't; they'll be given a series of psychiatric

drugs and ECT or they won't – depending upon the actions taken today

and tomorrow of concerned parents, citizens, civic groups, churches

and legislators.

There is no longer any mystery about the actions and intentions of

psychiatric interests, including NAMI and drug companies. They will

continue to push programs like screening and TMAP and will succeed

if not stopped. They are well-funded and fairly well organized.

However, that does not make them right or invincible. Our next

generation deserves the very best in care when it is needed, and

protection from fraudulent " care " that is implemented to line the

pockets of others.

Perhaps if more teens start thinking for themselves, as

Workman of Ohio has, the future will turn bright. is an

astute 14-year-old and has this to say: " I've been reading through

new statistics regarding TeenScreen in Ohio, and it appalls me. I've

come to realize TeenScreen is just a front to get kids on drugs

whether or not people want to realize this. " is currently

writing to all of his legislators in Ohio, to inform them of the

dangers of TeenScreen.

Cassandra Dawn Casey, President and Co-Founder of ASPIRE (The

Alliance to Stop Psychiatry's Influence in Religion and Education)

says that it's important to speak up. She says: " Talk to your

neighbors, friends, relatives, members of your affiliated

organizations, including your clergy and educational leaders and

your local legislative leaders. Help them to become better educated

on this most important and dangerous initiative. "

Oaks is the Director of MindFreedom International, which has

united 100 groups working for human rights and humane alternatives

in the mental health system. Mr. Oaks states, " I see a terrible

tragedy unfolding as literally hundreds of thousands of young people

are placed onto, often, dangerous psychiatric drugs, without

families being offered full information or a range of alternatives. "

He goes on to say: " I see an amazing rebellion stirring that cuts

across usual political lines. A federal bureaucrat recently called

this a " curious coalition " in the media. We are seeing traditionally

conservative groups working together with progressive social justice

and libertarian groups. The psychiatric drug companies have

overextended themselves, and the general public is showing signs of

waking up. I just hope they wake up very soon! "

When asked, " What needs to be done to thwart these insidious

programs? " , Oaks said, " On the national level, let's unite to push

through legislation, and make our topics issues in elections. While

we may all work in different groups, it's especially important that,

at times, all of these groups unite on some specific projects and

pull together. We are confronting one of the richest industries in

the history of the planet - the psychiatric drug industry - and this

will take a lot of people power. "

Given the concerns and the united force needed to give back the

power of choice to families and individuals, Mr. Oaks asks the

ultimate question, " The question is -- will there be enough people

to speak out to stop, literally, millions of more people being put

on psychiatric drugs internationally? That is not an exaggeration.

The mental health system has said they feel that millions of people

around the world need to be put on psychiatric drugs, so the stakes

are incredibly high. "

According to a September, 2005 Pittsburgh Post Gazette story

headlined:

" FIERCE OPPOSITION ARISES TO MENTAL HEALTH SCREENING IN SCHOOLS " ,

Hogan complained about opposition from a " curious coalition of

people " .

Hogan now says that " my skin is a little thin " after being accused

of being a " pill pusher and worse " .

Brace yourself Mr. Hogan, the curious coalition is expanding and

curiously coalescing.

***

For a copy of the references for this article, please e-mail Sue

Weibert at:

info(at)teenscreentruth.com

Or go to the website listed here:

http://www.teenscreentruth.com/new_freedom_commission.html

Independent journalist, Doyle Mills, contributed to this report

Sue Weibert is an investigative journalist, mother of six and

resides in Western NY. >>