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YOUR URGENT ACTION IS NEEDED on a bill quickly moving through Congress called "The Mother's Act" (H.R. 20) that calls for pregnant women to be screened for mental disorders and new mothers to be screened for "postpartum depression," resulting in their being prescribed dangerous antidepressants or other psychiatric drugs. A Senate Bill and a House Bill were introduced this year. The House Bill is right now in the Energy and Commerce Committee and a vote is expected within days, whereupon it will go to the House floor next week. The bill provides more appropriations for NIH to conduct research into "postpartum depression" and biological treatments
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I am writing to oppose "The Mother's Act" (HR 20) as with the current provisions and lack of safeguards, it could place pregnant women and their babies at serious risk. The bill lacks forethought and my concerns include:
- Mothers being forced to either take drugs or lose their children, even though some women with legitimate depression do not respond do drugs and do better simply taking supplements and going through talk therapy.
- The way in which the bill is currently worded could likely lead to thousands of suits as hundreds have already been filed concerning antidepressant use during pregnancy that has resulted in infants being born with a life-threatening lung disorder, PPHN and that between 10% and 20% of infants born with PPHN end up dying, even when they receive treatment.
- The provisions for research exclude studies on the safety of medications on unborn fetuses.
This bill simply has too much potential to erroneously find serious mental illness where none exists and force mothers to take medications that can harm their babies. This is a bad idea and I pray you will see that and vote against it.
Thank you, Alisa Terry from - Alisa Terry's Blog -
Here is the text of the bill:
http://www.theorator.com/bills110/text/hr20.html
Many mothers with post-partum depression, including Brooke Shields, have come out in support of this bill. It seems very important and inocuous because many women suffer from depression during pregnancy and birth in silence. However, Section 101 on expanded research excludes research on the safety of medications on fetuses. I also worry that mothers will be told by their doctors that they have to take medications or lose custody of their children.
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