Potential abuse of foster care children with psychotropic drugs is a national concern despite a slate of legislative reforms with 25% of foster care children on such medications. Find out more here: https://www.cchrint.org/2023/02/03/oversight-of-chemical-restraint-use-in-foster-care-children/
Citizens Commission on Human Rights International 6616 Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles, California 90028, United States Website https://www.cchrint.org Phone +1-323-467-4242 Email media@cchr.org
Psychotropic
Medication Use in
Foster Care Children
Comes Under Scrutiny
Citizens Commission on Human Rights International says potential abuse of foster care
children is a national concern because despite legislative reforms and stricter controls on
dispensing of the drugs, nationwide one in four children in foster care is administered at least
one psychotropic drug.
Concerns have been prompted by
recently released statistics that 34%
of foster care children in Maryland
are taking psychotropic drugs,
especially antipsychotics.
Medicaid is the country's largest payer for antipsychotics,
accounting for 80% of all antipsychotic prescriptions in the
country.
Medicaid antipsychotic spending was around
$166 million in 1991 and $3.36 billion in 2015
—a whopping 2,087% increase. Total
Medicaid enrollment increased by only 201%
between 1990 (22.9 million) and nearly 69
million in 2016.
In 2015, an HHS Inspector General report showed very little change. Over half of the
children receiving antipsychotics were victimized by “poor monitoring” of the drugs’ risky
health side effects, which include breast growth in boys, cardiac arrest, extreme weight
gain, and diabetes.
One large study in children and
youth and published in JAMA
Psychiatry showed a three-fold
increase in the risk of type II
diabetes for those prescribed
antipsychotics.
Children and youths are also put at risk of a lifetime side effect:
tardive dyskinesia, an incapacitating movement disorder.
A 2021 study showed that over a third of
children under Medicaid in foster care
were still being prescribed psychotropic
drugs at a higher amount than non-foster
children under Medicaid.
African American children and youths represent 23% of the
foster care population yet comprise only 14% of the U.S. child
and adolescent population.
As part of the foster care
population these kids—some
younger than five years—are at risk
of being given five or more
psychotropic drugs at a time.
CCHR says strong oversight and penalties are needed to protect foster children. While child
abuse currently encompasses four categories—neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and
emotional abuse—a fifth category should be added: prescribed psychiatric drug abuse.
Increasing the criminal and civil
penalties for those high prescribers
to vulnerable foster children is also
much-needed deterrent, CCHR
says.
Find Out More At https://www.cchrint.org
Medication Use in
Foster Care Children
Comes Under Scrutiny
Citizens Commission on Human Rights International says potential abuse of foster care
children is a national concern because despite legislative reforms and stricter controls on
dispensing of the drugs, nationwide one in four children in foster care is administered at least
one psychotropic drug.
Concerns have been prompted by
recently released statistics that 34%
of foster care children in Maryland
are taking psychotropic drugs,
especially antipsychotics.
Medicaid is the country's largest payer for antipsychotics,
accounting for 80% of all antipsychotic prescriptions in the
country.
Medicaid antipsychotic spending was around
$166 million in 1991 and $3.36 billion in 2015
—a whopping 2,087% increase. Total
Medicaid enrollment increased by only 201%
between 1990 (22.9 million) and nearly 69
million in 2016.
In 2015, an HHS Inspector General report showed very little change. Over half of the
children receiving antipsychotics were victimized by “poor monitoring” of the drugs’ risky
health side effects, which include breast growth in boys, cardiac arrest, extreme weight
gain, and diabetes.
One large study in children and
youth and published in JAMA
Psychiatry showed a three-fold
increase in the risk of type II
diabetes for those prescribed
antipsychotics.
Children and youths are also put at risk of a lifetime side effect:
tardive dyskinesia, an incapacitating movement disorder.
A 2021 study showed that over a third of
children under Medicaid in foster care
were still being prescribed psychotropic
drugs at a higher amount than non-foster
children under Medicaid.
African American children and youths represent 23% of the
foster care population yet comprise only 14% of the U.S. child
and adolescent population.
As part of the foster care
population these kids—some
younger than five years—are at risk
of being given five or more
psychotropic drugs at a time.
CCHR says strong oversight and penalties are needed to protect foster children. While child
abuse currently encompasses four categories—neglect, physical abuse, sexual abuse, and
emotional abuse—a fifth category should be added: prescribed psychiatric drug abuse.
Increasing the criminal and civil
penalties for those high prescribers
to vulnerable foster children is also
much-needed deterrent, CCHR
says.
Find Out More At https://www.cchrint.org