Rights Archives – Citizens Commission on Human Rights, CCHR

What are Parental Rights?

by CCHR Florida | Apr 12, 2020 | Baker Act, Children and Teens, Mental Health Screening, Parental Rights, Rights

Even before the current pandemic scare, Florida parents have worried about protecting their children, particularly at school. The fact that children were being regularly taken from school without prior parental notice or agreement for involuntary psychiatric...

CCHR Calls Involuntary Psychiatric Examination of Children in Florida a Human Rights Abuse

by CCHR Florida | Feb 18, 2020 | Baker Act, Children and Teens, Psychiatric Abuse, Rights, Universal Health Services

Over the past two weeks there has been a viral reporting of the tragic involuntary psychiatric examination of a 6-year-old girl in Jacksonville, Florida. Called a Baker Act, involuntary psychiatric examination is part of the Florida mental health law and it applies to...

Watchdog Calling for an Investigation into the Baker Acting of Children in Florida

by CCHR Florida | Dec 23, 2019 | Baker Act, Children and Teens, Mental Health Screening, Rights

In 2018 an astounding 36,078 involuntary psychiatric examinations were initiated on children in Florida, an almost 19% increase over the past four years. [1] Called a Baker Act, an involuntary examination of a minor allows for a child to be taken into custody and...

CCHR Warns: Baker Acting the Elderly Can be Fatal Due to ‘Transfer Trauma’

by CCHR Florida | Dec 18, 2019 | Baker Act, Elderly, Psychiatric Abuse, Psychiatric Drugs, Rights

Transfer trauma, also known as relocation stress syndrome, has been studied since the 1960s and according to controlled studies the mortality rate for elderly that are transferred is 2-4 times higher than those that are not subjected to this type of stress. [1] All...

Surge in Children on Dangerous Psychiatric Drugs Not Just a U.S. Problem

by CCHR Florida | Dec 12, 2019 | Children and Teens, Mental Health Screening, Psychiatric Disorders, Psychiatric Drugs, Rights

Today in the United States approximately 7.2 million children between the ages of 0 to 17 are using prescription psychiatric drugs, and almost half of them are on drugs due to being labeled with Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). This epidemic of...

CCHR Humanitarian Award Presented to Attorney Dedicated to Restoring Human Rights

by CCHR Florida | Nov 20, 2019 | Baker Act, Children and Teens, Fraud, Rights

Attended by hundreds of guests, the 4th Annual Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) Humanitarian Awards Banquet once again honored the many dedicated volunteers and supporters of CCHR for their work help restore rights and dignity to the field of mental health....

Justin Drach: Florida-based Attorney Fighting Widespread Abuses in the Psychiatric Industry

by CCHR Florida | Nov 20, 2019 | Baker Act, Children and Teens, Fraud, Psychiatric Abuse, Rights

Every year hundreds of thousands of people are taken into custody for involuntary psychiatric examination across the state of Florida. Called a Baker Act, the rampant abuse of rights under this law contributes to tens of millions of dollars in fraudulent billing. In a...

Surge in Child Baker Acts Prompts Watchdog to Call for Greater Protection of Children

by CCHR Florida | Nov 19, 2019 | Baker Act, Children and Teens, Mental Health Screening, Rights

The mental health law in Florida, commonly called a Baker Act, allows for a person of any age to be taken into custody and transported to a psychiatric facility for examination. During 2018 there were over 200,000 Baker Acts with more than 36,000 of them initiated on...

UK Legislators Asked to Increase Oversight and Criminal Accountability in U.S. Owned For-Profit Behavioral Hospitals

by CCHR Florida | Nov 5, 2019 | Acadia, Baker Act, ECT, Fraud, Psychiatric Abuse, Rights, Universal Health Services

Hundreds of UK legislators have been sent a White Paper on Fraud and Abuse in the UK’s for-profit behavioral industry, calling for tighter oversight and accountability of facilities owned by U.S companies, Acadia Healthcare and Universal Health Services (UHS). The...

CCHR, Mental Health Industry Watchdog, Rails Against Use of Commitment Laws That Detain Patients for Profit

by CCHR Florida | Oct 27, 2019 | Acadia, Baker Act, Mental Health Screening, Psychiatric Abuse, Rights, Sequel, Universal Health Services

Involuntary commitment laws are being used to detain mental health patients for profit, with the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) saying the system needs to be overhauled and stringent penalties put in place to stem the fraud and abuse. The group applauds...

Mental Health Watchdog Cites United Nations Report on Enforced (Involuntary) ECT is Recognized Torture

by CCHR Florida | Sep 30, 2019 | Baker Act, ECT, Rights

In a continuing series about the use of electroshock treatment (ECT) and this practice putting at risk a reported 100,000 Americans every year, Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR), a mental health industry watchdog, says electroshock can be given...

ELECTROSHOCK: BRAIN DAMAGE & CONSUMER FRAUD Mental Health Industry Watchdog Reiterates the Need for a Ban

by CCHR Florida | Sep 24, 2019 | Acadia, ECT, Fraud, Rights

In the second part of a series of public awareness articles posted on TruthAboutECT.org, Jan Eastgate, the president of mental health industry watchdog, Citizens Commission on Human Rights International explores the coverup of the dangers of psychiatric electroshock...

CCHR Exposes Electroshock Assault Masked as “Therapy”

by CCHR Florida | Sep 8, 2019 | ECT, Mental Illness, Psychiatric Abuse, Psychiatric Disorders, Psychiatric Drugs, Rights, Suicide

The mental health industry watchdog, Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) has been investigating what it says is harm in the name of “mental healthcare” for 50 years. Whether it is psychotropic drugs being linked to many mass shootings and stabbings, or the use...

Multi-Million Dollar Fines Insufficient to Curb Fraud & Patient Sexual Abuse in For-Profit Behavioral Health Industry, CCHR Says

by CCHR Florida | Aug 20, 2019 | Acadia, Children and Teens, Psychiatric Abuse, Rights, Sequel, Universal Health Services

Universal Health Services (UHS), which owns a chain of for-profit psychiatric facilities in the U.S. and the United Kingdom, has agreed to pay $127 million to settle a U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) civil probe into alleged fraud. The settlement is subject to...

Psychiatric Drugs for Toddlers? Let's Get Real.

by CCHR Florida | Jul 31, 2019 | Children and Teens, Mental Health Screening, Psychiatric Abuse, Psychiatric Disorders, Psychiatric Drugs, Rights

Health official Jeffrey Brosco is up in arms. He says our sons and daughters (even preschoolers) just aren’t getting enough mental health treatment. Of course, Jeffrey does have a special interest in this area, which may go a bit beyond a fatherly concern. Mr....