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Congress Fails to Protect Parental Rights in Mental Health Screening Programs

Representative Ron Paul (R-TX-14) introduced an amendment last week to House Resolution 3010 saying that "none of the funds made available in this Act may be used to create or implement any new universal mental health screening program." The amendment was defeated 97-304 in a late afternoon vote on June 24, 2005.

Last year, Congress passed the Consolidated Appropriation Act, H.R. 4818, which provided $20 million in funding for state grants in order to change their current mental health care system. HSLDA and other pro-liberty groups are concerned that states will use these grants to implement some form of mandatory, comprehensive mental health screening.

Representative Paul's amendment to H.R. 3010 would have alleviated the concerns about this type of system. However, powerful interest groups within the psychiatric community were adamantly opposed to the amendment and its protections for parental rights. The amendment was considered under short notice and consequently the voice of homeschoolers was not clearly heard.

The voting record is available at http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2005/roll317.xml </docs/link.asp?URL=http%3A%2F%2Fclerk%2Ehouse%2Egov%2Fevs%2F2005%2Froll317%2Exml>. Please check to see how your Congressman voted and write to either thank them for supporting the amendment or ask them why they did not.

    Our Congressman Geoff Davis voted YES on this amendment.  Be sure to thank Mr. Davis for this vote.

  The Honorable Geoff Davis

 1541 Longworth House Office Building

 Washington, D.C. 20515

 phone 202-225-3465

 fax 202-225-0003

  Local Office

 The Honorable Geoff Davis

 277 Buttermilk Pike

 Ft. Mitchell, KY 41017

 phone 426-0080 (859)

 Fax 426-0061

                  And while Congressman Ron Lewis of Kentucky voted YES with Geoff Davis, the rest of the Kentucky delegation of Anne Northup, Hal Rogers, Ben Chandler, and Ed Whitfield all voted NO.

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