Another Health Care Failure

This is a tragic case and I think it's all too common.

Thursday, September 10, 2009
Hmm, a desperate plan for this mom?

After speaking again to the CPS social worker that I'm supposed to take his birth certificate, etc to and sign him away.....after even sending his history to the Jolie-Pitt Foundation....after sending a desperate and maybe a little scathing email to every representative including Obama that represents my zip.....I decided to try to go viral.....I'm uploading this to youtube....please help me spread the message

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It should not be criminal to be mentally ill. It should be criminal to be treated by the insurance companies and our health system the way my son has been.

This boy was adopted from Russia at three years old. He looks about ten currently. He's now in a juvenile detention center for assaulting his mother. In order to get him into a non-punitive residential treatment center that costs $450 a day, she's being forced to give over custody to the state.

Biological parents also sometimes have to do this because of mental illness issues.

This is just cruel... regardless of how I feel about international adoption, this is the only family the boy has now. He should not be severed from them because of healthcare bureaucracy.

I also blame the international adoption agencies for this. They sugarcoat the risks to an insane degree. They don't tell prospective parents about residential treatment centers and psych meds and how much they cost.

Foster care families at least have some layer of protection. Sunny's contract includes residential treatment coverage. I know treatment has been a lifesaver for other families, allowing their children to recover and then come back to the family.

Unless the state takes the coverage away because of another budget crisis... then something like this case could happen to us. Sunny's foster mom just told us that adoption subsidies on several of her children had just been reduced dramatically, without warning.

I've written before that I don't think there should be any tax credit or subsidy given to encourage international adoption.  But once those children are here, that's different... all children, biological, adopted or foster, should have access to mental health services without tearing their family apart.