U.S. Rep. Ron Paul | mental health |
mental health
Honoring The Victoria High School Varsity Cheerleaders Of Victoria, Texas
10 March 1999 1999 Ron Paul 14:3
In addition to their cheerleading duties which include cheering at every sporting event held by their school and a rigorous practice schedule, each of these girls must maintain a grade of at least 80 in each class. They also participate in numerous community activities, such as the American Cancer Society’s Relay for Life and the March of Dimes Walk America. Additionally, they worked with the elementary and middle schools during TAAS testing and Red Ribbon Week, and the Gulf Bend Mental Health-Mental Retardation during Friendship Fest.
mental health
Opposes Mandatory Mental Health Screenings In Public Schools — Part 1
9 September 2004 2004 Ron Paul 67:1
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment. The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: Amendment No. 3 offered by Mr. PAUL: At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the following: SEC. ll. None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to create or implement any new universal mental health screening program. The CHAIRMAN pro tempore. Pursuant to the order of the House earlier today, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. PAUL) and a Member opposed each will control 5 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. PAUL).
mental health
Opposes Mandatory Mental Health Screenings In Public Schools — Part 1
9 September 2004 2004 Ron Paul 67:3
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Chairman, my amendment says that no funds in this bill will be permitted to be used to institute system of universal mental health screening. The New Freedoms Commission on Mental Health, a commission established in 2002, has recommended universal mental health screening for all our children in our public schools as well as adults who work in these schools. As a medical doctor, as a civil libertarian, and a strict constitutionist, I strongly reject this notion, this plan, as dangerous and nonproductive.
mental health
Opposes Mandatory Mental Health Screenings In Public Schools — Part 2
9 September 2004 2004 Ron Paul 68:5
When we see a monopoly school system, a universal school system, talking about standardizing what they think is sound mental health, believe me, we are treading on dangerous ground.
mental health
No Mandatory Mental Health Screening for Kids
October 6, 2004 2004 Ron Paul 76:2
The New Freedom Commission on Mental Health has recommended that the federal government adopt a comprehensive system of mental-health screening for all Americans .
mental health
Introducing The Parental Consent Act
4 January 2005 2005 Ron Paul 1:2
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.
mental health
Amendment No. 11 Offered By Mr. Paul
24 June 2005 2005 Ron Paul 72:1
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Chairman, I offer an amendment. The CHAIRMAN. The Clerk will designate the amendment. The text of the amendment is as follows: Amendment No. 11 offered by Mr. PAUL: At the end of the bill (before the short title), insert the following: SEC. ll. None of the funds made available in this Act may be used to create or implement any universal mental health screening program. The CHAIRMAN. Pursuant to the order of the House of June 23, 2005, the gentleman from Texas (Mr. PAUL) and the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. REGULA) each will control 5 minutes. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Texas (Mr. PAUL).
mental health
Amendment No. 11 Offered By Mr. Paul
24 June 2005 2005 Ron Paul 72:3
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Chairman, my amendment is straightforward: “None of the funds made available in this a may be used to create or implement any universal mental health screening program.”
mental health
Introducting The Parental Consent Act
17 May 2007 2007 Ron Paul 51:1
Mr. PAUL. Madam Speaker, I rise to introduce the Parental Consent Act. 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 guardian. This bill protects the fundamental right of parents to direct and control the upbringing and education of their children.
mental health
Introducting The Parental Consent Act
17 May 2007 2007 Ron Paul 51:2
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.
mental health
Introducting The Parental Consent Act
17 May 2007 2007 Ron Paul 51:4
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.
mental health
Introducting The Parental Consent Act
17 May 2007 2007 Ron Paul 51:5
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.”
mental health
Introducting The Parental Consent Act
17 May 2007 2007 Ron Paul 51:6
Madam Speaker, universal or mandatory mental health screening threatens to undermine parents’ right to raise their children as the parents see fit. Forced mental health screening could also endanger the health of children by leading to more children being improperly placed on psychotropic drugs, such as Ritalin, or stigmatized as “mentally ill” or a risk of causing violence because they adhere to traditional values. Congress has a responsibility to the Nation’s parents and children to stop this from happening. I, therefore, urge my colleagues to cosponsor the Parental Consent Act.
mental health
INTRODUCING THE PARENTAL CONSENT ACT
April 30, 2009 2009 Ron Paul 51:2
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.
mental health
Resolution on Mental Health Month
June 3, 2009 2009 Ron Paul 62:1
Mr. PAUL. Mr. Speaker, I certainly support efforts aimed at removing the stigma associated with mental health, increasing public awareness of the need to support those with mental health problems and their families, and the other goals of Mental Health Month. However, I am concerned that certain language in H. Res. 437 appears to endorse all of the recommendations of the New Freedom Commission on Mental Health, even though certain of the commission’s recommendations threaten individual liberty and the wellbeing of American children.
mental health
NATIONAL SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY WEEK
November 6, 2009 2009 Ron Paul 95:2
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.
mental health
NATIONAL SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGY WEEK
November 6, 2009 2009 Ron Paul 95:6
In order to protect our nation’s children from mandatory mental health screening, I have introduced introduce 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 cosponser H.R. 2218.
mental health
Forcing Kids Into a Mental Health Ghetto
13 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 13 September 2004 verse 1 ... Cached
Forcing Kids Into a Mental Health Ghetto
mental health
Forcing Kids Into a Mental Health Ghetto
13 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 13 September 2004 verse 2 ... Cached
A presidential initiative called The “New Freedom Commission on Mental Health” has issued a report recommending forced mental health screening for every child in America, including preschool children. The goal is to promote the patently false idea that we have a nation of children with undiagnosed mental disorders crying out for treatment.
mental health
Forcing Kids Into a Mental Health Ghetto
13 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 13 September 2004 verse 4 ... Cached
Dr. Karen Effrem, a physician who strongly opposes mandatory mental health screening, warns us that “America’s children should not be medicated by expensive, ineffective, and dangerous medications based on vague and dubious diagnoses.” She points out that psychiatric diagnoses are inherently subjective, as authors of the diagnostic manuals admit. She also is concerned that mental health screening could be used to label children whose attitudes, religious beliefs, and political views conflict with the secular orthodoxy that dominates our schools.
mental health
Forcing Kids Into a Mental Health Ghetto
13 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 13 September 2004 verse 5 ... Cached
The greater issue, however, is not whether youth mental health screening is appropriate. The real issue is whether the state owns your kids. When the government orders “universal” mental health screening in schools, it really means “mandatory.” Parents, children, and their private doctors should decide whether a child has mental health problems, not government bureaucrats. That this even needs to be stated is a sign of just how obedient our society has become toward government. What kind of free people would turn their children’s most intimate health matters over to government strangers? How in the world have we allowed government to become so powerful and arrogant that it assumes it can force children to accept psychiatric treatment whether parents object or not?
mental health
Forcing Kids Into a Mental Health Ghetto
13 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 13 September 2004 verse 6 ... Cached
Parents must do everything possible to retain responsibility and control over their children’s well-being. There is no end to the bureaucratic appetite to rule every aspect of our lives, including how we raise our children. Forced mental health screening is just the latest of many state usurpations of parental authority: compulsory education laws, politically-correct school curricula, mandatory vaccines, and interference with discipline through phony “social services” agencies all represent assaults on families. The political right has now joined the political left in seeking the de facto nationalization of children, and only informed resistance by parents can stop it. The federal government is slowly but surely destroying real families, but it is hardly a benevolent surrogate parent.
mental health
Mental Health Screening for Kids- Part II
20 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 20 September 2004 verse 1 ... Cached
Mental Health Screening for Kids- Part II
mental health
Mental Health Screening for Kids- Part II
20 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 20 September 2004 verse 3 ... Cached
Last week I wrote about a presidential initiative called the “New Freedom Commission on Mental Health,” which issued a report calling for the mandatory mental health screening of American schoolchildren. This new proposal threatens to force millions of kids to undergo psychiatric screening, whether their parents consent or not. At issue is the fundamental right of parents to decide what medical treatment is appropriate for their children.
mental health
Mental Health Screening for Kids- Part II
20 September 2004 Texas Straight Talk 20 September 2004 verse 5 ... Cached
Some members of Congress objected to my amendment on the grounds that the federal screening program does not yet exist, so it’s premature to oppose it. But the whole point was to prevent the proposal from being implemented in the first place. Once created, federal programs are nearly impossible to eliminate. Congress had a rare opportunity to stop a bad idea in its tracks, before it becomes entrenched. Every member who opposes the idea of forcing kids to undergo mental health screening should have sent a strong statement by voting for my amendment. They will have another chance to kill the initiative when I introduce a stand-alone bill later this year.
mental health
Don't Let Congress Fund Orwellian Psychiatric Screening of Kids
31 January 2005 Texas Straight Talk 31 January 2005 verse 3 ... Cached
Every parent in America should be made aware of a presidential initiative called the “New Freedom Commission on Mental Health.” This commission issued a report last year calling for the mandatory mental health screening of American schoolchildren, meaning millions of kids will be forced to undergo psychiatric screening whether their parents consent or not. At issue is the fundamental right of parents to decide what medical treatment is appropriate for their children.
mental health
Don't Let Congress Fund Orwellian Psychiatric Screening of Kids
31 January 2005 Texas Straight Talk 31 January 2005 verse 4 ... Cached
Forced mental health screening simply has no place in a free or decent society. The government does not own you or your kids, and it has no legitimate authority to interfere in your family’s intimate health matters. Psychiatric diagnoses are inherently subjective, and the drugs regularly prescribed produce serious side effects, especially in children’s developing brains. The bottom line is that mental health issues are a matter for parents, children, and their doctors, not government.
mental health
Don't Let Congress Fund Orwellian Psychiatric Screening of Kids
31 January 2005 Texas Straight Talk 31 January 2005 verse 5 ... Cached
Unfortunately, however, the mental health screening initiative received funding from House and Senate appropriators in the 2005 federal budget. This funding allows states to create or expand mental health screening programs with your tax dollars. More importantly, the commission recommends a broader federal program in the near future.
mental health
Don't Let Congress Fund Orwellian Psychiatric Screening of Kids
31 January 2005 Texas Straight Talk 31 January 2005 verse 8 ... Cached
It is important to understand that powerful interests, namely federal bureaucrats and pharmaceutical lobbies, are behind the push for mental health screening in schools. There is no end to the bureaucratic appetite to run our lives, and the pharmaceutical industry is eager to sell psychotropic drugs to millions of new customers in American schools. Only tremendous public opposition will suffice to overcome the lobbying and bureaucratic power behind the president’s New Freedom Commission.
mental health
Don't Let Congress Fund Orwellian Psychiatric Screening of Kids
31 January 2005 Texas Straight Talk 31 January 2005 verse 9 ... Cached
Your help is needed. Please tell everyone you know about HR 181, and ask them to call their representatives and senators in Washington to voice strong opposition to forced mental health screening. Demand that the Department of Health and Human Services receive no tax dollars in this year’s appropriation bill for screening programs, and that states receive no federal dollars for programs of their own. Refer to my congressional website for articles from September 2004 about mental health screening, and sobering statistics about anti-depressant drugs and kids in the text of HR 181. Most of all, talk with your friends, family, and colleagues about the underlying issue of whether the state owns your kids. Remind them that freedom can be maintained only when state power is limited, especially when it comes to fundamental freedoms over our bodies and minds.
mental health
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
27 June 2005 Texas Straight Talk 27 June 2005 verse 1 ... Cached
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
mental health
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
27 June 2005 Texas Straight Talk 27 June 2005 verse 3 ... Cached
On Friday Congress defeated an amendment I introduced that would have prevented the federal government from moving forward with an Orwellian program to mandate mental health screening of kids in schools. This program, recommended by a presidential commission, has not yet been established at the federal level. However, your tax dollars are being given to states that apply for grants to establish their own programs-- and a full-fledged program run by the Department of Health and Human Services is on the way.
mental health
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
27 June 2005 Texas Straight Talk 27 June 2005 verse 4 ... Cached
Nearly 100 members of Congress supported my amendment. Many of these members represent Texas and Illinois, two states that already have mental health screening programs in place. They have heard from their constituents, who believe intimate mental health problems should be addressed by parents, kids, and their doctors- not the government. These parents do not appreciate yet another government program that undermines their parental authority.
mental health
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
27 June 2005 Texas Straight Talk 27 June 2005 verse 5 ... Cached
The psychiatric establishment and the pharmaceutical industry of course support government mental health screening programs in schools, because they both stand to benefit from millions of new customers. But we should not allow self-interested industries to use a government program to create a captive audience for their products. We should be especially careful about medicating children with psychotropic drugs when their brains are still developing. Far too many children are being stigmatized by dubious diagnoses like Attention Deficit Disorder, and placed on drugs simply because they exhibit behavior that we used to understand as restlessness or rambunctious horseplay. This is especially true of young boys, who cannot thrive in our increasingly feminized government schools. Sadly, many parents and teachers find it easier to drug energetic boys than discipline them.
mental health
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
27 June 2005 Texas Straight Talk 27 June 2005 verse 6 ... Cached
Dr. Karen R. Effrem, a pediatrician and leading opponent of government mental health screening, makes the following points about such programs:
mental health
Federal Funding for Mental Health Screening of Kids
27 June 2005 Texas Straight Talk 27 June 2005 verse 14 ... Cached
Certainly there are legitimate organic mental illnesses, but that does not mean it is the role of government to subject every child to arbitrary screening without the consent of parents. Most Americans still understand that certain things are none of the government’s business, even if Congress does not. If you are a parent, do everything you can to protect your children by demanding to be notified of any screening program in their schools. As a voter, let your state and federal legislators know that you don’t want tax dollars spent on mental health screening programs. If we act now, we still can prevent the federal government from creating a nationwide, mandatory program that will place millions of American youngsters into a stigmatized, drugged, mental health ghetto.
mental health
Security and Liberty
23 April 2007 Texas Straight Talk 23 April 2007 verse 7 ... Cached
I fear that Congress will use this terrible event to push for more government mandated mental health programs. The therapeutic nanny state only encourages individuals to view themselves as victims, and reject personal responsibility for their actions. Certainly there are legitimate organic mental illnesses, but it is the role of doctors and families, not the government, to diagnose and treat such illnesses.
mental health
Congressional Control of Health Care is Dangerous to Children
30 September 2007 Texas Straight Talk 30 September 2007 verse 3 ... Cached
Despite political rhetoric about a War on Drugs, federally-funded programs result in far more teenage drug use than the most successful pill pusher on the playground. These pills are given out as a result of dubious universal mental health screening programs for school children, supposedly directed toward finding mental disorders or suicidal tendencies. The use of antipsychotic medication in children has increased fivefold between 1995 and 2002. More than 2.5 million children are now taking these medications, and many children are taking multiple drugs at one time.
mental health
Congressional Control of Health Care is Dangerous to Children
30 September 2007 Texas Straight Talk 30 September 2007 verse 4 ... Cached
With universal mental health screening being implemented in schools, pharmaceutical companies stand to increase their customer base even more, and many parents are rightfully concerned. Opponents of one such program called TeenScreen, claim it wrongly diagnoses children as much as 84% of the time, often incorrectly labeling them, resulting in the assigning of medications that can be very damaging. While we are still awaiting evidence that there are benefits to mental health screening programs, evidence that these drugs actually cause violent psychotic episodes is mounting.
mental health
Congressional Control of Health Care is Dangerous to Children
30 September 2007 Texas Straight Talk 30 September 2007 verse 5 ... Cached
Many parents have very valid concerns about the drugs to which a child labeled as “suicidal” or “depressed,” or even ADHD, could be subjected. Of further concern is the subjectivity of diagnosis of mental health disorders. The symptoms of ADHD are strikingly similar to indications that a child is gifted, and bored in an unchallenging classroom. In fact, these programs, and many of the syndromes they attempt to screen for, are highly questionable. Parents are wise to question them.
mental health
Congressional Control of Health Care is Dangerous to Children
30 September 2007 Texas Straight Talk 30 September 2007 verse 6 ... Cached
As it stands now, parental consent is required for these screening programs, but in some cases mere passive consent is legal. Passive consent is obtained when a parent receives a consent form and fails to object to the screening. In other words, failure to reply is considered affirmative consent. In fact, TeenScreen advocates incorporating their program into the curriculum as a way to by-pass any consent requirement. These universal, or mandatory, screening programs being called for by TeenScreen and the New Freedom Commission on Mental Health should be resisted.
Texas Straight Talk from 20 December 1996 to 23 June 2008 (573 editions) are included in this Concordance. Texas Straight Talk after 23 June 2008 is in blog form on Rep. Paul’s Congressional website and is not included in this Concordance.
Remember, not everything in the concordance is Ron Paul’s words. Some things he quoted, and he added some newspaper and magazine articles to the Congressional Record. Check the original speech to see.