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Children's Mental Health Coalition Presents Bill of Rights
Children's
Mental Health Coalition Introduces Bill of
Rights for Families Living With Mental
Illnesses
For Immediate Release
Contact: Erin Baker, Communications Director
202.966.7300, Ext. 119
ebaker@aacap.org
Adam Lowe, Communications Coordinator
202.966.7300, Ext. 154
alowe@aacap.org
Washington, D.C., April 15, 2008 - The
children's mental health coalition has created
a Bill of Rights for Children with Mental
Health Disorders and their Families. The
coalition includes the American
Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP),
the Autism Society of America (ASA), the Child
and Adolescent Bipolar Foundation (CABF),
Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD), the Federation
of Families for Children's Mental Health
(FFCMH), Mental Health America (MHA), and the
National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI).
This Bill of Rights represents the standard of
what families living with mental illnesses
should expect from treatment," said
AACAP's President, Robert Hendren, D.O.
"Children do better when they receive
consistent, tailored treatment. Few children
receive any treatment and fewer still
receive the sustained, quality care that they
require."
The Bill of Rights was created because of the
inconsistency of accessible mental healthcare
services throughout the country.
The Bill of Rights:
1. Treatment must be family-driven and
child-focused. Families and youth, (when
appropriate), must have a primary
decision-making role in their treatment.
2. Children should receive care in home
and community-based settings as close to home
as possible.
3. Mental health services are an
integral part of a child's overall
healthcare. Insurance companies must not
discriminate against children with mental
illnesses by imposing financial burdens and
barriers to treatment, such as differential
deductibles, co-pays, annual or lifetime caps,
or arbitrary limits on access to medically
necessary inpatient and/or outpatient
services.
4. Children should receive care from
highly-qualified professionals who are acting
in the best interest of the child and family,
with appropriate informed consent.
5. Parents and children are entitled to
as much information as possible about the
risks and benefits of all treatment options,
including anticipated outcomes.
6. Children receiving medications for
mental disorders should be monitored
appropriately to optimize the benefit and
reduce any risks or potential side effects
which may be associated with such treatments.
7. Children and their families should
have access to a comprehensive continuum of
care, based on their needs, including a full
range of psychosocial, behavioral,
pharmacological, and educational services,
regardless of the cost.
8. Children should receive
treatment within a coordinated system of care
where all agencies (e.g., health, mental
health, child welfare, juvenile justice, and
schools, etc.) delivering services work
together to support recovery and optimize
treatment outcome.
9. Children and families are entitled to
an increased investment in high-quality
research on the origin, diagnosis, and
treatment of childhood disorders.
10. Children and families need and
deserve access to mental health professionals
with appropriate training and experience.
Primary care professionals providing mental
health services must have
access to consultation and referral resources
from qualified mental health professionals.
To interview a child and adolescent
psychiatrist about this bill of rights, please
contact AACAP's Communications Coordinator,
Adam Lowe, at 202-966-7300, ext. 154 or alowe@aacap.org.
© 2000-2003 New Jersey Parents' Caucus,
Inc. All rights reserved.
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