Two families have filed suit against Horizon Insurance because their children were denied mental health coverage. The insurance based their decision on the kids’ personal writings on Facebook and MySpace.

This officially proves that NOTHING is sacred. Move over, Google and start selling those private medical records to the highest bidder. It’s only going to take one or two disgruntled employees to open that can of worms…or a nice, fat check on the side. If UCLA Medical Center employees will sell celebrity medical records to the tabloids, you can be sure a Google employee can’t be far behind. Read more…

KMOV (CBS affiliate) in St. Louis has completed an investigation into pharmaceuticals that are manufactured in China. Apparently the FDA had no clue. No surprise there. The FDA wouldn’t know a dog bit its ass unless the dog bribed someone.

Since this is the kind of thing that often goes missing on websites, I want to repost the list of drugs here. Some of them are psych drugs, such as the generic version of Wellbutrin and Lamictal.

The list:

Here’s a list of medicines made in China. Read more…

Imagine the government organizes a new committee to study “Issues Facing Black Women in Contemporary America.” The goal of the group will be to study the issues, define problems facing black women today and come up with possible solutions.

Now imagine a meeting room, a large round table of talking heads and vigorous discussion. This new committee is entirely comprised of white men.

Outrageous, right? Inconceivable that anyone in his/her right mind would create a committee to study such issues and not include black women, is it not? Imagine the outcry from black women if such a group were formed. Rightfully so.

Why then, is it acceptable to have committees left and right, studying mental health issues, supposedly with one of the goals being helping persons with mental illness and not including any patients? It’s not acceptable, but it’s common.

Mental health committees are often made up of “experts” only. Anyone with a title, psychiatrist, psychologist, MSW, RN, professor, and so on. Missing are the patients (and family members, who also often have a large stake in the issues).

There is such a large gap between what the experts think they know, and the realities of living life as a person with mental illness. That’s why inclusion in every committee, every group, and every meeting is required. Nothing about us without us.

That non-inclusion continues on such a large basis reinforces the view that mental patients are less than.

UCLA Medical Center says it’s going to fire 13 non-physician employees and discipline 12 others, including several doctors, for violating Britney Spears’ privacy. They snooped into Britney’s personal records during her recent psychiatric hospitalization.

Since the media seemed to have so many details on what was happening, who was visiting and constant gossip on her progress, there’s little doubt some of them sold information to the press. Read more…

Every time a horrible crime occurs and involves a person with a history of any kind of mental illness, whether minor depression or lifelong schizophrenia, there are always the screechers who cry that commitment laws aren’t tough enough.

The real truth is the laws are in place. But people - including parents - who tried to get someone committed and failed are sure that it’s the system’s fault.

I hear from people in emails more than I’d like about this very issue, and I’ll tell you this: in every case, when you get to digging out the facts, it’s a lack of persistence at fault. If you *really* want to get someone committed, it’s not that hard to do, especially if they’re truly a danger to themselves.

But what I’ve seen is that people make one try, don’t find a psychiatrist who is willing to go the distance, and then give up. Then they blame the system. Or they call the police and expect them to fix a mental health crisis.

It’s not the responsibility of police, unless a crime is being committed. Why don’t people understand that?

Some psychiatrists are more tenacious than others. Some are willing to sign an emergency hold order (in most states that’s 3 days) because there’s not much involved. A signature saying the person meets the standard. Being a danger to oneself can be interpreted widely.

But a full, legal commitment requires more work. It’s not hard to achieve, because most people don’t have the resources to fight it in court. It does, however, require some time and paperwork, as well as followup from a psychiatrist.

I’m not going to give a how-to session on committing someone. The laws are there and it can be done. It’s just that sometimes it may take more work than a phone call or two. So it’s easier to make a phone call, pronounce it a failure and then blame the system.

That’s the American way.

Well, I was certainly wrong when I thought the furor would die down after the Virginia Tech shooting, and crazy people could still buy their guns.

I’ll keep it short and sweet.

–Nobody wants a crazy person (or mental defectives, as we’re now called…thanks Congress!) to have a gun and go on a shooting spree.

–Nobody wants ANYONE to have a gun and go on a shooting spree.

Here’s what the Chicago Trib says:

That’s not to say there was no disagreement. Some groups claiming to speak for the mentally ill said the ban would unfairly punish people for a medical condition. A gun-rights group that parted with the NRA said the change would amount to “a denial of a civil liberty, and it’s being done without due process.”

Fortunately, Congress gave those complaints the short shrift they deserved, and President Bush is expected to sign the bill. It will help to prevent the next Cho from carrying out the bloody designs of his disturbed mind.

Anyone who believes that last line is living in dreamland. What it’s going to prevent is some people going for any treatment at all, lest their records end up in a database.

The mentally ill truly are worthless pieces of shit to the rest of the world.

It didn’t take long at all for lawmakers, pundits and citizens to start calling for increased gun control and increased crazy control. I’m hopeful it will be a lot of talk and screeching, but in the end, not much will change. That’s the Washington way. Not surprisingly, the gun debate is divided along traditional lines. Those who oppose guns still do, and those who believe in gun rights, well, they’re focusing on crazy control. Read more…