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Author: Sheila Matthews

FDA Responds to AbleChild’s MedWatch PSA Request for Public Education

Recently, AbleChild requested that the FDA run their own PSA (Public Service Announcement) to educate the public on how to report Adverse Drug Reactions directly to the Agency.  The FDA’s response to our request is shocking, as they state that because MedWatch is a “voluntary” program, there is no need to run the PSA to educate the people on its existence and importance.

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Why Toxicology & Death Certificate Reports Matter in Setting Public Policy

As a Country, we rely on death statistics to improve public policy and enhance overall health.   Believe it or not the details in the toxicology and death certificates that are processed through the medical examiner’s office provide valuable information to set public policy.  When this information is withheld from the public, it is a detriment to ones personal liberty.  National issues, such as mental health treatments, gun control, and the right to privacy are directly impacted and become distorted when numbers are manipulated.

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FDA’s MedWatch Minute, Where has it been?

AbleChild found a 2016 Public Service Announcement on the Consumer Adverse Drug Reporting System.  One must ask, why hasn’t this been running on TV?  With the billion dollar drug industry advertising on TV, it is amazing that this FDA PSA hasn’t seen the light of day.  This is exactly why we need a urgent call to action to get a MedWatch law passed for the consumers.

We need your help, please take action  Please support our efforts to keep informed consent mission going!

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Medwatch: Time is of the Essence

Take Action: Push for MedWatch Information

With the medical federal state of emergency, the government is looking to fast track potentially life-saving pharmaceuticals and vaccines. Given these circumstances, we feel this is a perfect time to educate consumers about MEDWATCH, the adverse event drug reporting system for the consumer. MEDWATCH allows the public to report adverse side effects from medications, medical devices, and other FDA-regulated products, and then publishes any necessary safety alerts.

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Buster B. Basset Hound – The Label Buster

Finally a book for families that not only discusses the problems caused by labeling children but also offers explanations and solutions that a child can understand. This entertaining book is written from a child’s perspective and validates a child’s feelings about being labeled. Taking a positive and uplifting approach, the story explains how the labeling is not the child`s fault and what can be done to stop it.

 

Internal FDA Documents Link Mind Altering Psychiatric Drugs to Murder

Rare documents, that are kept far from the public view, expose the knowledge the FDA has regarding the link between mind altering psychiatric drugs and murder.

Below are internal documents that were collected through the MEDWATCH reporting system on adverse drug events collected by the FDA and obtained by Parents Against Pharma by a Freedom of Information Request. (FOIA)

These documents illustrate the importance of educating the public on the MedWatch Adverse Drug Reporting System and the known link between mind-altering psychiatric drugs and increase risk of homicide.

AbleChild vs. Chief Medical Examiner in Connecticut was the case in front of the Freedom of Information Commission in the aftermath Sandy Hook requesting the release of Adam Lanza’s mental health records, toxicology, and autopsy reports.  AbleChild submitted FDA findings in our filing.

In addition, these documents should be provided to every lawmaker to increase consumer protection laws on informed consent in the “loosely” regulated field of mental health that places us all in danger.

ParentsAgainstPharma
FDA MedWatch Prozac
FDA Prozac MedWatch2

PostMarketing
Highlights
Vyvanse FDA MedWatch
Redacted2
LINK TO MURDER FDA Nortrityline
LINK TO MURDER FDA
RedactedProsac4
Redacted

Mental Health First Aid, A $20 Million Price Tag for Compassion

What are the odds Gary Scheppke, a member of the Marin County Board of Mental Health, would happen to be on the Golden Gate Bridge with his newly obtained “mental health first aid” certificate in hand to stop a person from jumping? According to the San Jose Mercury News the odds were pretty good, as explained in its article: A surge in federal funding for Mental Health First Aid could make it as popular as CPR.

Getting beyond the bizarre bridge encounter and Scheppke’s relationship with the Marin County Board of Mental Health, let’s take a look at the comparison the article draws to CPR and Mental Health First Aid and then the $20 million federally funded “certificate.”

According to the Mayo Clinic, “Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) is a lifesaving technique useful in many emergencies, including heart attack or near drowning, in which someone’s breathing or heartbeat has stopped. The American Heart Association recommends that everyone — untrained bystanders and medical personnel alike — begin CPR with chest compressions.”

The Mayo Staff continues, “It’s far better to do something than to do nothing at all if you’re fearful that your knowledge or abilities aren’t 100 percent complete. Remember, the difference between your doing something and doing nothing could be someone’s life.”

The Mental Health First Aid eight-hour course reportedly provides skills to individuals on how to identify symptoms of mental illness, such as depression and how and when to intervene. According to Discovery’s executive director, Kathy Chierton, the course provides interactive and role-playing exercises that help participants empathize with people with mental disorders, “Often, says Chierton, “it can take a decade from when the first symptoms of mental illness show up to when people receive treatment, so early intervention is crucial.”

Let’s remember, though, that there is no objective test for diagnosing any alleged mental disorder – no X-ray, blood work, CAT scan. The diagnosis is completely subjective, based on a set of criteria voted into existence by the American Psychiatric Association (APA). According to the former head of the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), Thomas Insel, the problem with diagnosing mental illness, “it lacks validity.”

Despite the fact that psychiatric diagnosing is based in neither science or medicine, millions of dollars continue to funnel into mental health services, which largely consists of prescribing dangerous mind-altering drugs – often causing the very behaviors they allegedly “treat.”

For example, the Sandy Hook Elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut, in which a mentally disturbed young man, Adam Lanza, killed 20 children and six adults was the rallying cry for President Obama to sign an executive order providing $20 million in federal funds for the Mental Health First Aid program.

However, according to the Connecticut state police investigation and the Connecticut Child Advocate’s “story” on Adam Lanza, from a very young age, Lanza received the best mental health money could buy. In fact according to the Hartford Courant report, the psychiatry department at Danbury Hospital performed mental health screening on Lanza and released him, concluding he was not a harm to himself or others. This is a clear indication that mental health screenings (diagnosing) are completely unreliable and, as NIMH Insel said, “lacks validity.”

It isn’t very often that someone can say they talked a person out of jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge but, according to San Jose Mercury News, Gary Scheppke, now that he has received the mental health first aid certificate, can identify mental illness when he sees it and act accordingly? Wow, that’s some miraculous training. Or, is it really just a case of one human being showing compassion to another. This compassion, though, comes with a $20 million price tag.

Minnesota Reaches Out to AbleChild to Discuss New CT Law 1-800-MedWatch on “Prescription Drug Container Bill”

On Thursday July 9th, at 7 pm Eastern time, AbleChild will be a guest on TS Radio Show with Marti Oakley.

Marti Oakley is a talk show host with a focus on state and national legislation. This is not the first time media has reached out to AbleChild regarding liberty in mental health.

This broadcast will focus on the recently passed “Prescription Drug Container Bill” that incorporated an AbleChild amendment to include the 1-800-MedWatch consumer reporting phone number directly on the containers. AbleChild will also discuss the legislative impact of the aftermath of Sandy Hook.

Senate Bill 28 “The Prescription Drug Container Bill” unanimously passed both the Connecticut House of Representatives and Senate.

The AbleChild amendment makes it mandatory for all generic prescription drug containers to carry the 1-800-MedWatch telephone number on the container.

MedWatch is a drug safety reporting system made available to consumers to allow direct reporting of Adverse Drug Events to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

This is a first-in-the-nation legislative action to provide this important consumer 1-800-MedWatch number directly on a prescription drug label, and a landmark win for consumers in Connecticut.