The Alaska State Senate passed a bill that would let schools bypass parental consent and either recommend or actually deliver psychological and psychiatric therapy to children without obtaining parental consent.
Approved in a 14-5 vote on April 24, Senate Bill 240 would empower a “mental health professional working within the public school system” to obtain consent for treatment from teens who are at least 16 years old. This could include outpatient behavioral or mental health services.
Additionally, the “mental health professional” providing these services could conceal the treatment from parents if they believe divulging this information would be “harmful to the minor receiving services.”
If passed by the State House and signed by Gov. Dunleavy, public schools officials could provide myriad so-called “mental health services,” including treatments that deal with gender identity, sexual orientation, parental relationships, suicidal thoughts, depression and more.
Republican lawmakers from the Mat-Su, Senators Shelley Hughes and Mike Shower, were the most vocal opponents of the bill.
“It is another example of the erosion of parental rights,” Hughes told her colleagues before the majority voted to pass it. “What we have before us is a bill that would allow all youth, without their parents knowing that they are seeking care.”
While supporters claimed that some students need the ability to consent to mental health services that deal with suicidal thoughts, even if their parents disagreed, Hughes pointed out that existing law already deals with this by allowing courts to terminate parental rights in emergency cases.
Sen. Shower agreed that youth need access to mental health services, but he strongly disagreed with portion of the bill that undermines parental rights.
“There are some decisions you probably don’t want those kids necessarily making, and being influenced by somebody that may want to suggest all kinds of things to them,” he said. “And it’s not a stretch to say things like medical procedures and other stuff. Why do we know this? Because it’s happening in other states. They are being convinced to take medical procedures and things without the parents’ knowledge. Being taken to a doctor for a medical procedure that might change their life, and the parents aren’t involved in the discussion to bring them in.”
ALASKA WATCHMAN DIRECT TO YOUR INBOX
The bill comes at a time when the State of Alaska is poised to vastly expand the number of mental health workers across its public school system through a network of school-based health centers (SBHC). These outposts will soon be stationed within schools in order to offer a litany of medical services and counseling dealing with sensitive and often highly divisive issues.
Controversy surrounding SBHC stems from the fact that they are enthusiastically supported by far-leftist organizations like Planned Parenthood and others who see public schools as a way to advance pro-abortion, contraception and gender identity services while students are away from their parents.
The original version of Senate Bill 240 was requested by Gov. Dunleavy as simply a way to expand Medicaid coverage of school-based services to all children who are Medicaid eligible – not just those who have documented disabilities listed in their Individualized Education Programs.
Sen. Cathy Giessel (R-Anchorage) then took the original bill and successfully amended it in committee by inserting language that cuts parents out of the decision-making process when it comes to schools offering mental health services to teens.
HOW SENATORS VOTED
— The following Senators voted in support of the bill: Click Bishop (R-Fairbanks), Matt Claman (D-Anchorage), Forrest Dunbar (D-Anchorage), Cathy Giessel (R-Anchorage), Elvi Gray-Jackson (D-Anchorage), Lyman Hoffman (D-Bethel), Scott Kawasaki (D-Fairbanks), Jesse Kiehl (D-Juneau), Kelly Merrick (R-Eagle River), Donny Olson (D-Golovin), Bert Stedman (R-Sitka), Gary Stevens (R-Kodiak), Loki Tobin (D-Anchorage) and Bill Wielechowski (D-Anchorage).
— The following senators voted against the bill: Jesse Bjorkman (R-Nikiski), James Kaufman (R-Anchorage), Robert Myers (R-North Pole), Mike Shower (R-Wasilla) and David Wilson (R-Wasilla).
— Before the final vote, Sen. Hughes had to leave the Senate floor in order to catch a flight.
TAKING ACTION
— SB 240 now heads to the State House. To contact members of the House, click here.
— To contact Gov. Dunleavy, click here.
26 Comments
Cutting parents out sets precedence, what’s next? clearly our lawmakers don’t have our best interests in mind and as far as the current education system goes, YouTube is a far safer option.
Many kids do not come from an Ozzie and Harriet home. Maybe they are abused or neglected and have developed mental health concerns. Involving dirtbag parents could make things horrible. And anyway, if a kid feels s/he needs help, why get in the way?
I almost could agree with your premise except more entitlement and enabling has solved nothing over history, we will always have dysfunction. It is pt going away in our fallen world. Enabling it by constant rescuing is not solving the problem nor is it lessening it. It does though hurt everyone else working hard to do the right thing. Providing resources for parent(s) to get help with better parenting and or adddiction, anger etc would be money better spent. There is already a safety net of sorts in place for accused kids. History has proven, expanding the nanny state has not solved anything.
I absolutely agree. When I was in public school, there was always at least one COUNSELOR available to tald to when needed. Socialization is a big part of public school, and in such an environment (ESPECIALLY during the really awkward puberty years), a student may very easily feel more comfortable talking to a school counselor about things they don’t feel comfortable talking about at home, particularly if that home is dysfunctional.
“What if?”
So, because some parents might be “dirt bags,” we should assume all parents are and trust that those employed by the public school system will always have each child’s best interest at heart?
We should treat all parents like dirt bags, but public school employees as those who should be trusted with our children’s mental health and well being?
The default should be that public school employees should be trusted to make decisions on behalf of minors, and parents should be kept in the dark?
This is madness, friends. But it is also merely a symptom of two generations of parents who’ve a abandoned their children to day care and public schooling so they can chase after things other than their children.
Sorry for the typo. I meant “talk,” not “tald.”
Jeanette, the problem is the psychiatric world today is not what it was when you were a kid in school. My sisters son, in Utah, was told by his psychiatrist that if anyone made him upset he could leave the room and that he didn’t have to do his school work because the school would push him through the system anyway. The psychiatric world is now “treating” gender confused kids with hormone blockers and surgeries. This is the standard of care now, no questions asked. This is a travesty to all of America and is robbing these kids of a normal happy life. This new age of transgender kids commit suicide by age 30. A child with cancer has a better survival rate than a child with gender confusion.
Good grief auto mistake at it again, and it was not my thumb pecking! I reviewed my whole post then ‘abused’ changed to ‘accused’.
We have no representation…. All are purchased and sold to the highest bidder.
ALLOWING GIESSEL BACK INTO OUR STATES GOVT SHOWS THE ATROPHY OF THE VOTERS IN HER DISTRICTS INTELLECT. SAD…
As a mental health professional I think this is a terrible idea. Just a quick sample of reasons:
1) Who determines when the family/child breach is server enough to invoke this barrier between them?
2) The definition of and credentialing of who can carry out the ‘therapy’ is unclear. There is a spectrum of mental health professionals such as psychiatrists, psychologists, counselors, nurse practitioners, etc.
3) In the mental health field, ‘keeping secrets’ is recognized as part of pathological social systems including family systems and this act actually supports secrets and passive lying in the family.
4) Those reading the bill might think of ‘therapy’ as just talking BUT ‘therapy’ in the mental health field includes the use of hypnosis, psychiatric medication, etc. The use of such interventions without parental involvement sets the District and school staff up for civil litigation when there are adverse outcomes.
5) Decisions, diagnoses and treatments are only as good as the information on which they are based. With this bill all actions will flow from only the child’s potentially distorted, immature view and reporting. The child will be able to use the bill to manipulate and punish the parents.
I could go on and on but I think you get the idea .
Great post!!
These are just the begining of problems…namely this is unconstitutional, abhorant, diabloical, and evil.
the Rs that voted for this need a shalacking by their constituents, but we all know thise Rs are corrupted and their voters are low information lazy idiots.
I think our leaders are mentally ill! The people need the right to institutionalize them!
We need to get out in the streets and protest this! We need to physically but peacefully show Dunleavy that this is not right! This is the only way we will get our state government to hear us. Does anyone else agree with me or will you stand by and allow this to happen?
Agreed
Steiner would abstain from this vote considering she set this up with SB128.
This is pure madness!!
It must be stopped. If there children need help the parents
should be there for them
I remember when she passed herself off as a “conservative”. Now she seems to be your average leftist. I guess she read her district and decided to reinvent herself to be elected. Amazing what people will do to stay in power… it is like a drug.
Agree, but will Dunleavy stand tall or hide under his rock.
Cathy Giessel is pure evil. I can’t believe, people re-elected her.
The answer to your question, dunleavy whimpers in the closet of the mansion he now occupies!
Did they or did Dominion re elect it?
Dominion selected her!
Snow. ,” we should assume all parents are and trust that those employed by the public school system will always have each child’s best interest at heart?“. It’s illogical to claim that because dirt bag parents exist “then we should assume all parents are [dirt bags]”. Same with your swipe at employees. Your claim is the product of an absence of critical thinking. If your claim were true, then (if you’re a parent), you are a dirt bag which is not true.
REMEMBER YOUR LOVED ONES WHO DIED DURING THE LOCKDOWN – IN SOLITARY CONFINEMENT. MOST OF THESE PURCHASED POLITICIANS DID AND SAID NOTHING TO DEFEND THEM OR THEIR RIGHTS, MAKING THEM CRIMINAL COMPLICIT IN THE HEINOUS CULLING OF HUMANITY. LET THEIR MEMORY GUIDE YOUR CONSCIENCE TO REMOVE THESE NON-FEELING BEINGS FROM OFFICE, JUST AS THEY NOW ELIMINATE PARENTAL RIGHTS ON THEIR EVIL PATH TO DISSOLVING OUR CONSTITUTION AND GOD-GIVEN RIGHTS AS GOD’S CHILDREN. FOLLOW THE CONSTITUTION … OR IT WILL FOLLOW YOU.
Oh yes and enough of. Mary Peltola commercials preserving our fisheries ,talk to the people on. the Yukon…
Homeschoolers told all of you all this communists agenda was going to become a war for parental rights.
Shows who is bought by the medical lobby.