Michigan/Pharma Raping Taxpayers, Overdosing Preschoolers

[Deborah]

"The frontline treatment for these children are atypical antipsychotic drugs, such as Zyprexa, Risperdal, Seroquel, Abilify, and Geodon."

http://www.northernexpress.com/editoria ... sp?id=2465

Northern Express
Are kids being overdosed?
Anne Stanton

Does Your Toddler Really Need an Anti-Depressant?
Report shows that thousands of Michigan preschoolers are being prescribed psychiatric drugs

Activist Ben Hansen looks like a regular Traverse City nice guy. He's handsome with a neatly trimmed gray beard, often dressing in a casual flannel shirt and a Tiger's ball cap. He lives in a tiny house in Traverse City on the tiniest of incomes.

But don't let his modest appearance fool you. He is asking big questions of pharmaceutical companies, or pharma, our country's most powerful industry. And what he wants to know is this: Why are thousands of foster children and poor children on Medicaid - children who are too young for kindergarten - being put on antipsychotics, anti-depressants, anti-hyperactive medicine, as well as pills that eliminate the tremors caused by these medications?
[Genocide of the poor/undesirables? Or just easy profits? Or both?]

Hansen's window into this trend is data compiled by the Michigan Department of Community Mental Health (MDCH), which oversees the Medicaid and foster care programs.

For nearly two years, Hansen has been going back and forth with the department with Freedom of Information Act requests. MDCH has given Hansen much of what he wants, but drew the line on giving him the names of drugs (as opposed to the general drug classes such as anti-depressants) that are dispensed to children under the age of five. They also refused to provide the names of drugs for patients of any age who are taking five or more psychiatric drugs, citing patient confidentiality.

DRUG COCKTAILS
Hansen assured the judge he has no interest in confidential information and offered to pay the labor cost of blacking out names. His suit, accompanied by supporting documents by experts in the field, argues that researchers require the data to study the changing prescribing patterns of psychiatric drugs to young children, as well as the increasing number of adults taking "psychiatric drug cocktails."

Hansen questions, for example, why the number of adults taking three are more psychiatric drugs increased by 68 percent within six months last year (5,544 adults to 9,328). He believes that it's harmful to the patients and taxpayers alike. But he needs to provide specific drug names to researchers to make his case.

Last week, Judge Beverley Nettles-Nickerson of the Ingham County Circuit Court ruled in favor of the State's motion to dismiss Hansen's FOIA request. The judge also ordered Hansen to pay $3,500 for the state's legal costs.

Hansen is incensed by the ruling and intends to request a re-hearing. That's because the Medicaid data that he has been given-some 1,000 pages worth-has raised significant alarms.

TODDLERS AND DRUGS
A key report obtained by Hansen showed that in 2005, some 3,064 psychiatric drug prescriptions were issued to children, ages four and under. They ranged from antidepressants to what are called atypical antipsychotics.

A third were sedative hypnotics/anxiolytics (sleeping pills like Ambien and Lunesta and anxiety reducers), while another third were antidyskinetics (also called antiparkinsonians) typically prescribed for trembling in Parkinson's patients and for movement disorders such as tics, tremors and restless legs syndrome in children.

The report showed that 46 prescriptions were for ADHD (attention deficit hyperactive disorder), while 875 were mood stabilizers/anti-convulsants. Ninety-four children received medicine to combat depression. These drugs, according to the 2005 report, cost the state $467,343.

The vast majority of these drugs were never approved for use by children and some may carry a 'black-box' warning of suicidal thoughts and behavior for children.
Since that 2005 report, the state began lumping all children under the age of 18 together, which is one reason why Hansen asked for the "under 5" age breakdown after 2005.

'PUBLIC HEALTH DISASTER'
Hansen wonders why the number of very young Michigan children on anti-Parkinson drugs has quadrupled in the past two years. He suspects it may be due to drug-induced movement disorders caused by psychiatric drugs used for the treatment of ADHD, autism, and depression in children.

"If the increased prescribing of antidyskinetics is the direct result of an increase in the diagnosis and treatment of 'mental disorders' in American toddlers, then we could be witnessing a public health disaster of monumental proportions," Hansen said.

Hansen also worries that the new drugs are being prescribed to children without enough study of their long-term effects on their bodies and brain development.

Doctors do know of potential, near-term side effects. Depakote, used to treat mania and seizures, can cause obesity and diabetes. Those who take Risperdal may suffer from involuntary movements, such as twisting the neck in a birdlike fashion. Zyprexa is linked to obesity and diabetes. Lithium can damage the thyroid and kidneys.
[Ummm. More dollars for the industry to treat the side-effects.]

TEEN YEARS
When looking at the number of Michigan children on Medicaid or foster care, 17 and under, the numbers really soar. Nearly 13,000 children last year took Zyprexa or some other atypical antipsychotic at an estimated cost of more than $3 million, according to MDCH data.

These are not just numbers, but real children, Hansen stressed.

"I challenge anyone in the state of Michigan or anyone who works for the Department of Community Health or any doctor to prove me wrong," Hansen said. "Step forward with the data and tell me, 'Ben Hansen, what you say is happening is not happening. Our children are not being targeted by the drug companies simply because once they're on these drugs, they are patients for life.' Believe me, I'd love to be wrong about this."

Last week, he was on the phone with a foster care caseworker who told him of a boy, who had acquired a twitch in his neck and was already on at least two prescription drugs. His doctor then prescribed Adderall (an anti-ADHD medicine) to quell the twitch, and the boy suddenly died several days later. His caseworker suspected that drugs played a role, but shied away from the story when a reporter was mentioned.

Hansen said that he would ideally like to see morbidity data - how many children and adults die when given psychiatric drug combinations of three or more.
"I know I'll eventually get my hands on the data I'm seeking, but how many lives will be destroyed before I do? When will people wake up to what's happening? Will it be too late? We're talking about real lives here."

MORE BIPOLAR KIDS?
Six years ago, several leading psychiatrists reached a consensus that bipolar disorder existed and was diagnosable for pre-pubescent children with the results published in Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, according to an article recently published in the New Yorker.

But the article also reported that even now, clinicians disagree on whether it's possible to accurately diagnose bipolar disorder. For one, there's no consensus on how to define aberrant behavior in children under six, and also many young children can't adequately explain what they're experiencing,

Since 1999, the percentage of mentally ill children under the age of 18 diagnosed with bipolar disorder has increased four-fold, the New Yorker article reported.

The frontline treatment for these children are atypical antipsychotic drugs, such as Zyprexa, Risperdal, Seroquel, Abilify, and Geodon.

MSU Professor Bertram Karon wrote in Hansen's court filing that he is "alarmed" by the over-reliance on psychiatric medications for schizophrenia and other mental disorders.
"These medications, frequently pre-scribed off-label, and mixed in 'drug cocktail' combinations, are now being administered to patients at very young ages, a practice virtually unheard of only a couple decades ago."

THOUSANDS OF KIDS
There are similar concerns throughout the country. A study of children on Medicaid in Texas was so disturbing-63,118 children, 18 and under, were put on stimulants, anti-depressants, or antipsychotics, with nearly a third taking drugs from at least two of those classes-that Texas established strict guidelines in dispensing drugs to children. Doctors were also warned not to over-prescribe drugs or prescribe drugs for off-labels uses.

The New York Times ran a story just last week on "Industry's Role in Childrens' Antipsychotics." The paper analyzed records in Minnesota, the only state that requires public reports of all drug company marketing payments to doctors. Those records provide "rare documentation of how financial relationships between doctors and drug makers correspond to the growing use of atypicals in children.

"From 2000 to 2005, drug maker payments to Minnesota psychiatrists rose more than sixfold, to $1.6 million. During those same years, prescriptions of antipsychotics for children in Minnesota's Medicaid program rose more than ninefold," the article reported. The doctors who received the most money from drug makers prescribed the highest number of antipsychotics, the article reported.

DRUG COCKTAILS
Data for adults on Medicaid in Michigan was troubling as well.

One adult, Hansen found, was taking 17 different psychiatric drugs at one time, all paid for with tax dollars. The most recent data showed a 300 percent increase in the adult ADHD category within a six-month period-from five people to 20.

"Growing numbers of patients are now prescribed a dozen or more psychiatric drugs concurrently-a practice in no way supported by scientific evidence," wrote Bertram Karon, a professor of clinical psychology at Michigan State University in support of Hansen's FOIA request.

Hansen said he needs specific names of drugs dispensed because the numbers often don't add up in the reports that were issued. Hansen believes it's because some drugs overlap different classes.

Assistant Attorney General Thomas Quasarano represented the State of Michigan in the case. He referred comments to spokesman Matt Frendeway, who said the records were confidential and exempt from law, but not specifically why since the information would not be linked to any individual.

The state's court filing also contended that the Release of Information for Medical Research and Education Act exempts this class of records from FOIA. Hansen would have to qualify as a "review entity" to receive the data.

"After reading and rereading the judge's decision I do not believe that she made a substantive ruling on the 'review entity' issue. Her ruling appears to be more of a procedural decision," said Alan Kellman, who is handling the FOIA case pro bono for Hansen.

Kellman acknowledged in the suit that MDCH has already provided quite a lot of data. "However, a line is drawn when it comes to simply providing the names of the drugs. This is, to be straightforward, incomprehensible. What purpose is actually served? . Certainly not one of confidentiality. This is arbitrary. It must not be allowed."

Next week: An article on Ben Hansen and his own brush with the mental health system, and why he now believes our pill-popping society is losing its mind.

[hanzomon4]

Thanks for posting this...

FYI I'm still working on that case I pm-ed you about but I'm getting no where. I hope this guy wins his FOIA.

[Deborah]

You're welcome. Good luck.
And a little satire from The Onion....
http://www.theonion.com/content/news/mo ... EMTF_Onion

More U.S. Children Being Diagnosed With Youthful Tendency Disorder
September 27, 2000 | Issue 36•34

REDLANDS, CA–Nicholas and Beverly Serna's daughter Caitlin was only four years old, but they already knew there was a problem.

More U.S. Children Being Diagnosed With Youthful Tendency Disorder
Day after day, upon arriving home from preschool, Caitlin would retreat into a bizarre fantasy world. Sometimes, she would pretend to be people and things she was not. Other times, without warning, she would burst into nonsensical song. Some days she would run directionless through the backyard of the Sernas' comfortable Redlands home, laughing and shrieking as she chased imaginary objects.

When months of sessions with a local psychologist failed to yield an answer, Nicholas and Beverly took Caitlin to a prominent Los Angeles pediatric neurologist for more exhaustive testing. Finally, on Sept. 11, the Sernas received the heartbreaking news: Caitlin was among a growing legion of U.S. children suffering from Youthful Tendency Disorder.

"As horrible as the diagnosis was, it was a relief to finally know," said Beverly. "At least we knew we weren't bad parents. We simply had a child who was born with a medical disorder."

Onion Med Watch
Youthful Tendency Disorder (YTD), a poorly understood neurological condition that afflicts an estimated 20 million U.S. children, is characterized by a variety of senseless, unproductive physical and mental
exercises, often lasting hours at a time. In the thrall of YTD, sufferers run, jump, climb, twirl, shout, dance, do cartwheels, and enter unreal, unexplainable states of "make-believe."

"The Youthful child has a kind of love/hate relationship with reality," said Johns Hopkins University YTD expert Dr. Avi Gwertzman. "Unfit to join the adult world, they struggle to learn its mores and rules in a process that can take the entirety of their childhood. In the meantime, their emotional and perceptive problems cause them to act out in unpredictable and extremely juvenile ways. It's as though they can only take so much reality; they have to 'check out,' to go Youthful for a while."

On a beautiful autumn day in Asheville, NC, six-year-old Cameron Boudreaux is swinging on a park swingset–a monotonous, back-and-forth action that apparently gives him solace. Spotting his mother on a
nearby bench, Cameron rushes eagerly to her and asks, "Guess what?" His mother responds with a friendly, "What?"

Common YTD Warning Signs
With unbridled glee, Cameron shouts, "Chicken butt!"--cryptic words understood only by him--before laughing and dashing off again, leaving his mother distraught over yet another baffling non-conversation.

"I must admit, it's been a struggle," Mary Boudreaux said. "What can I say to him when he says something like that, something that makes no sense? Or when he runs through the house yelling while I'm trying to
balance the checkbook? You can't just say, 'Please, Cameron, don't have a disorder for just a few minutes so I can concentrate.'"

Cameron's psychological problems run even deeper. He can name every one of his beloved, imaginary Pokemon characters, but the plain realities of the actual world he inhabits are an enigma: Ask Cameron the name of the real-life city councilman sponsoring the referendum to renovate the park just across the street from his house–a park he plays in daily–and he draws a blank.

According to Dr. Dinesh Agarwal, director of child psychiatry at NYU Medical Center, such disconnectedness from reality is a coping mechanism
for YTD sufferers. "The Youthful child is born into a world he or she does not fully understand," Agarwal said. "Their brain pathways are still forming, and they need to repetitively relearn how to assimilate into society. These disassociative play-fantasies apparently help them accomplish that."

Debra Cottle of Malden, MA, discusses her daughter's recently diagnosed YTD with pediatric neurologist Dr.Amy Yuan. But such fantasies come at a price, producing in Youthful children a disinterest in the everyday responsibilities of life bordering on contempt.

"Jesse knows when it's his turn to take out the trash. We've gone over the house rules a dozen times," said Richard Torres, a Davenport, IA, father of three whose nine-year-old son Jesse was recently diagnosed with YTD. "And still he neglects the job time and again."

Slowly, methodically, through an elaborate system of rewards and punishments, Jesse has shown improvement. But the road ahead is long.

"We get a lot of platitudes from the so-called experts," Torres said. "We hear a lot of, 'Oh, he'll grow out of it, just give it time.' That's easy for
them to say–their kid's not running around the neighborhood claiming to be Superman."

Help for families struggling with YTD may soon be on the way. At last month's annual AMA Convention, Smithkline-Beecham unveiled Juvenol, a promising YTD drug which, pending FDA approval, could reach the U.S.
market as early as next spring. Already available in France and Sweden, Juvenol, the Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet reported, resulted in a 60 percent decrease in running and jumping among users.

But until such help arrives, the parents of YTD sufferers can do little more than try to get through each day.

"I love my child with all my heart," said Alexandra Torres, Jesse's mother. "But when he's in the throes of one of his skipping fits, it's hard not to feel a little envious of parents with normal, healthy children."

[hanzomon4]

Did I miss something? That sounds like a normal active kid.. As a kid I was convinced that I would grow up to be a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle. I could spend hours pretending I was in outer space or running wild on my hapless opponents(stuffed animals) in the squared circle(bed, queen sized). The kid doesn't know the name of the real-life city councilman? What?!!?

Why can't a kid just be a kid these days?

[Deborah]

Satire. But unfortunately, not far from reality.

[hanzomon4]

ops:

I thought they were serious....   ::roflmao::

[Ursus]

:rofl:  :rofl:   Such is the nature of "The Onion"... many layers must one peel to get to the core, only to find that there isn't one!    :wink:   'Tis the layers themselves that are the prize!

[Ursus]

Another Ben Hansen article:

http://www.raggededgemagazine.com/depar ... 00766.html



Excerpted, abridged, and translated into plain English by Ben Hansen, MindFreedom Michigan[/i]

If you're a doctor treating a patient for schizophrenia, the Physician Procedural Manual will help guide your clinical practice and make things a lot easier for you.

At each step of the way, always remember your three options: continue the present drug regimen, adjust the drug dose, or move on to another drug. Don't even THINK about taking your patient off drugs. The manual plainly states, "The schizophrenia algorithm contains no guidelines for antipsychotic medication discontinuation, which is anticipated to be a rare event in the typical mental health clinic patient population."

Your main task as a physician is to prescribe drugs. As a rule of thumb, it's always best to prescribe a new drug before its patent expires. For this reason, the new drugs called atypical antipsychotics are an excellent choice as first-line treatment.

Atypical antipsychotics cost twenty times more than older drugs, but cost is only one factor to consider when making a clinical judgement. Another factor is profit. With this in mind, schizophrenia can be treated in seven distinct stages, outlined below.

STAGE 1. Prescribe an atypical antipsychotic such as Zyprexa, Risperdal, or Seroquel. Some physicians will select a drug based on whichever sales rep last visited the office, but this is not recommended. Whatever brand you choose, if your patient shows little or no improvement after 4 weeks, go to the next stage.

STAGE 2. Switch to a different atypical antipsychotic. You may select a particular drug based on the quality of free ballpoint pens provided by the manufacturer, but this is not recommended. If results are unsatisfactory after a few weeks, go to the next stage.

STAGE 3. Switch to yet another atypical antipsychotic, or try a conventional antipsychotic such as Haldol for old times' sake. If progress remains unsatisfactory after a few more weeks, go to the next stage.

STAGE 4. Prescribe Clozaril. Since there's a 50-50 chance the patient will respond unfavorably to Clozaril, you may skip this stage and go directly to the next stage.

STAGE 5. Prescribe Clozaril in combination with another antipsychotic, or Clozaril in combination with electroshock. The manual says, "Almost all studies have shown beneficial effects of electroschock for persistent psychotic states." The manual also says, "There are no controlled studies of electroshock for schizophrenia in which number of treatments, duration of treatments, and electrode placement have been systematically evaluated." Therefore, if you're going to use electroshock on the patient, be sure to use it at least ten times, on both sides of the brain. If this proves unsuccessful, go to the next stage.

STAGE 6. Try one of the few remaining atypical antipsychotics you haven't tried yet. If results are satisfactory, that would be nice but it's not very likely at this stage, so go to the next stage.

STAGE 7. Prescribe any combination of two antipsychotics OR two antipsychotics plus electroshock OR two antipsychotics plus a mood stabilizer such as Depakote. Maintain this regimen for at least 12 weeks, if your patient lives that long.

Helpful hints for the clinician

In addition to prescribing drugs for schizophrenia, you may need to prescribe drugs for various "co-existing symptoms" of schizophrenia, such as sedatives for agitation, mood stabilizers for hostility, hypnotics for insomnia, antidepressants for depression, and so on.

You may also need to prescribe drugs to treat adverse side effects of drugs prescribed for schizophrenia, such as diabetes caused by Zyprexa or tremors caused by Risperdal, not to mention side effects of drugs prescribed for co-existing symptoms, such as hostility caused by antidepressants prescribed for depression and/or depression caused by mood stabilizers prescribed for hostility, and so on.

Before long, you'll be prescribing drugs to manage side effects of drugs prescribed to manage side effects, like a dog chasing its tail. The manual explains, "Using a medication to treat a side effect can result in additional adverse effects." This is why "side effects algorithms" are included in the manual as well. Don't worry. Just follow the manual.

Always remember to monitor your patient's progress. This is a routine task which may be performed in 5 minutes or less during regular office visits. Use the 8-point rating scale summarized below.

1. Does patient believe others have acted maliciously or with discriminatory intent?

2. Has patient had odd, strange or bizarre thoughts in the past 7 days?

3. Has patient had visions or seen things others cannot see?

4. Is patient's speech confused, vague, or disorganized?

5. When asked a question, does patient pause for long periods before answering?

6. Does patient's face remain blank or expressionless? ("Disregard changes in facial expression due to abnormal involuntary movements, such as tics and tardive dyskinesia," the manual advises.)

7. Does patient seem withdrawn or unsociable?

8. Does patient dress sloppily, or come to your office with poorly groomed hair? ("Do not rate grooming as poor if it is simply done in what one might consider poor taste," the manual advises.)

If the answer to all eight questions is no, your patient is probably not taking medications as prescribed. When noncompliance is a problem, the patient should be restrained if necessary and forcibly injected with a timed-release antipsychotic. Maintain this regimen until patient gains insight into the need for treatment.

The cutting edge of science

This project was modeled after the Texas Implementation of Medication Algorithms. A distinguished panel of 25 Michigan experts very carefully replaced the word "Texas" with the word "Michigan" in all appropriate spots.

As new studies financed by drug companies discover ways to expand the market, and new products developed by drug companies enter the market, "this algorithm will be periodically revised and updated."

Funding for the Michigan Implementation of Medication Algorithms was provided by the Ethel and James Flinn Foundation of Detroit. The Michigan Pharmacy Quality Improvement Project, promoting the same agenda and with several of the same committee members, is funded by Eli Lilly, maker of Zyprexa. Lilly sales representatives carry a wide variety of ballpoint pens and other cool stuff.

If you think this is a joke, look at the original document: www.mimentalhealthebp.net

Ben Hansen is an anti-psychiatry activist who lives in Traverse City, Michigan.
His email address is heartofbear@hotmail.com . Read his last article for Ragged Edge, CATIE & You.

Posted on January 26, 2006

[Deborah]

Search TMAP here for more info on Bush's initiative to screen all Texans, except males over 18 for mental illness and how TMAP was 'perfected' in Texas using foster kids as guinea pigs. One story that highlights the nightmare is Medicating Aliah, also here.
Much of that info is in these threads:
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.php?p=52430#52430
http://www.fornits.com/wwf/viewtopic.ph ... 373#107373
Aliah's story at Mother Jones
http://www.motherjones.com/news/feature ... aliah.html

[Ursus]

Medicating Aliah was such a powerful and depressing story.  I am so frustrated, I can not comment further...  :evil:

[Nihilanthic]

Yet again I wonder just how much fucking writing we have to have on the wall before people CARE about this.

I also wonder why mental treatment facilities, which are supposed to help people under distress, clearly use restraint (and the accompanying terror and fear of it being done again when they're finally let out)  as a punishment to make them obey?

 :roll:

I'm seriously considering opting out of mental health coverage so I won't be insured and won't have to go through that shit, should I say the wrong thing in the wrong place.

Or, just leaving this nation. Ugh. Sorry to derail the thread but, well, fuck!

[Ursus]

Another  link from Mother Jones...

James Ridgeway is the Washington Correspondent for Mother Jones.[/i]

[Ursus]

NYTimes Article ...regarding those recruited cheerleaders noted in the previous post.

Correction: Dec. 8, 2005, Thursday:

A front-page article on Nov. 28 about cheerleaders who take jobs in pharmaceutical sales misstated the origin of a fictional diary of a cheerleader-turned-drug-saleswoman, which has circulated by e-mail. It was written by Dr. Douglas Farrago, a family physician in Auburn, Me., and was first published in 2002 in his bimonthly publication the Placebo Journal, and subsequently appeared in his book "The Placebo Chronicles: Strange but True Tales from the Doctors' Lounge." It was not anonymous.[/i]