News
Parents’ Bill of Rights – The Right to Make Medical Decisions
As a parent in Florida, you have the right to make medical decisions to address any needs of your minor child. This is a matter between you, your minor child, and a competent health care professional chosen by you. To learn more about your rights, visit...
Parents’ Bill of Rights – The Right to Opt Out Health Services
As a parent in Florida, you have the right to opt your minor child out of any services offered under the school health services program by submitting a request in writing. For more information on your rights, visit www.know-your-rights.org
Parental Rights and The Baker Act
In 2021, Florida created the Parents’ Bill of Rights. This new section of Florida law makes it clear that it is a fundamental right of a parent to direct the upbringing, education, health care, and mental health of his or her minor child. Additionally, changes were...
CCHR Applauds World Health Organization Report on Coercive Psychiatry, Electroshock & Consent
The report covers UN resolutions which ask countries to address unlawful institutionalization, overmedication and other practices in the field of mental health. Recently, the World Health Organization (WHO) released a 296-page report covering recommendations from the...
Baker Act? Protect Your Children with 5 Simple Steps!
In 2021, the passage of the School Safety Bill, amended Florida law to require parental/guardian notification prior to the initiation of a Baker Act on a minor child. The intention behind these revisions was to reduce the number of inappropriate Baker Acts on children...
Anxiety or Physical Illness? Knowing Which Can Save Your Life
Many people do not realize that individuals with actual physical ailments are misdiagnosed as having a mental disorder all the time. It is a huge problem recognized by the medical and psychiatric community. [1] Unfortunately, it is also a dangerous problem with those...
CCHR Demanding Investigation into Suicide Prevention Failures, Access to Care and Mental Health Funding in Florida
Spending in the mental health market has increased by 52.1% since 2009 yet U.S. suicide rates hit a 50-year historical high. In 2018, there were an estimated 1.4 million suicide attempts and more than 48,000 deaths by suicide, making it the tenth leading cause of...
CCHR Florida Offering Baker Act Continuing Education Course for Professionals
Designed for mental health professionals, the virtual course is delivered by an attorney and covers the basic human rights impacted by the mental health law. Florida’s mental health law, commonly referred to as the Baker Act, allows for individuals of all ages to be...
Baker Acting of Children: Citing Abuse, Advocates Demanding Change to Law
Over 37,000 Baker Acts were initiated in Florida on children during 2018/2019 and advocates are demanding a change to the law to protect children from abuse. The Florida mental health law, commonly called the Baker Act, allows for individuals of all ages to be taken...
CCHR’s Baker Act Continuing Education Courses Help Protect Citizens from Abuse
The Florida chapter of the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) began hosting continuing education courses for attorneys in 2018 in response to the alarming number of people taken into custody each year under the Baker Act. Florida’s mental health law, known as...
The Abject Failure of the Mental Health Industry to Prevent Suicide Should be Investigated
Spending in the mental health market has increased by 52.1% since 2009 yet U.S. suicide rates hit a 50-year historical high. In 2018, there were an estimated 1.4 million suicide attempts and more than 48,000 deaths by suicide, making it the tenth leading cause of...
Watchdog Group Demands Change to Laws Governing the Baker Acting of Children
The Baker Act has been a formidable survivor of reformation and according to the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, changes to protect children are needed. Decades of abuse and loss of parental rights follow in the wake of the Baker Act. And despite demands for...
Predicting & Preventing Suicide
Predicting & Preventing Suicide In 2018, there were an estimated 1.4 million suicide attempts and more than 48,000 deaths by suicide, making it the tenth leading cause of death in the United States.[i] Recent world events have placed a tremendous amount of...
Mental Health Watchdog Hosts Baker Act Continuing Education Course in Campaign to Protect Citizens from Abuse
The virtual course identifies the basic human rights impacted by the Baker Act, areas of abuse and the unintended consequences. Almost 25 years ago the Florida Supreme Court issued an Executive Summary following a review of the use of the Baker Act. In this report,...
Tens of Thousands of Children Taken into Custody: The Baker Act Must Be Reformed
Baker Act abuse runs rampant and calls for reformation are resounding from press to parents. CCHR says it is time for change, one that is a long time coming. Fifty years of Baker Act abuse and maltreatment is more than enough for Florida citizens, practitioners, and...
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