• The mental health screening that has reared its head in many pieces of legislation;
• lack of protection of students and parents from coercion by the schools to use psychiatric drugs;
• sharing of sensitive psychiatric data across government agencies.

• protecting parental consent;
• protecting children from evaluations based on political beliefs or worldview.

These concerns are not limited only to children receiving special education services. “Pre-referral services” may be offered to children that need
“academic” or “behavioral” support. This could result in behavior modification programs without parental consent.  There is no clear definition of “academic” or “behavioral” problems that would trigger intervention.
 
If these issues of mental health screening, medication coercion, parental consent, data privacy, and politically motivated evaluations concern you, you can do something about them. Click here to notify your Members of Congress about these issues and influence the final negotiations and votes.
 
Everything you need is there for you.  If you understand the issue from alerts on mental health screening and IDEA sent out by EdWatch, simply read the letter and provide the requested information. Your letter will automatically be forwarded on to your US Senators and Representative.  If you need more information, just click on the "Learn More About This Issue" button below the introduction on that website.
 
After you have sent your e-letter, we encourage you to follow it up with a fax and/or a telephone call to your members of Congress. To find their fax and telephone numbers, use this link. By typing in your zip code, the names, fax numbers, and telephone numbers of your two Senators and House member come up for you.

If you care about these issues, please forward this email alert on to your family, friends, and your circle of influence. Please post it on your websites.  Congress needs to hear from the public on these crucial matters.
 
EdAction is grateful to Michael Ostrolenk, our new Director of Government Affairs, and Citizens for Health for their assistance with this action alert.
 
Disclaimer:  EdAction thanks Citizens for Health for their support in the fight against mental health screening, medication coercion, and the other issues raised in this alert, and for the use of this action alert to contact Congress on these important issues.  The views and programs endorsed by Citizens for Health on their website are not necessarily those of EdAction.  If you are not interested in receiving health information from Citizens for Health at this time, please be sure to uncheck the box that offers it that is just beneath the contact information you provide.