Updates Behind the Scenes: Mad In America Launches My Blog About SAMHSA
Mad In America, major webzine for “rethinking psychiatry,” just published, today, June 29, 2021, my new blog: “Will US Agency New Head End Stonewalling About Money for Involuntary Outpatient Mental Health?” The US Senate confirmed President Biden’s nomination for the new leader of Substance Abuse & Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Miriam Delphin-Rittmon, PhD, an African-American psychologist.
SAMHSA has been supporting involuntary outpatient mental health, which can mean court-ordering US citizens to take powerful, controversial psych drugs in our own homes in the community. However, SAMHSA has so far refused to provide any information or evaluation about their more than $25 million in grants.
My original Mad In America blog is here, please share & comment:
www.madinamerica.com/2021/06/end-stonewalling-involuntary-outpatient/
An audible version of the Mad In America blog is here:
News Updates: Will SAMHSA Start to Repair Damage?
29 June 2021
A few hours before Mad In America published my blog, 29 June 2021, Lindsay Baran, a staff person for the National Council on Independent Living (NCIL), supporting the Mental Health Subcommittee, said:
SAMHSA’s refusal to provide us with the requested information is unacceptable. People are being harmed – their rights are being violated – by these grants, and SAMHSA’s lack of transparency is incredibly alarming.
A few hours AFTER Mad In America published my blog, and I contacted President Biden & SAMHSA, a staff person with SAMHSA’s FOIA office called me at home. She was very nice. She said that there had been quite a turnover in that department. She is the third staff person I am dealing with. She said she had been hired in the Spring, and would get me some materials by this week, or at the latest next week.
This staff person said SAMHSA’s FOIA office had so much material they would need to get it to me as a “rolling” download of about three big files a week. We will let you know about the results.
We will also post other updates here, as we get them. The latest will be on top.
Additional Resources About the SAMHSA Blog
As listed in the blog, July is MAD Pride Month, and you can find out more about it here:
aciu.info/2021/06/22/mad-pride-month-july-2021/
Mad In America has all of my blogs from the past few years on my author’s page:
www.madinamerica.com/author/doaks/
Shortly before my blog was published by Mad In America, I created a personal blog about my experience, including the record heat here in Eugene, Oregon:
Waiting For My Blog, Breaking Heat Records Here In Eugene: davidwoaks.com/today-eugene-heat-record
Below, please find personal blogs over the past few months that relate to this topic:
No New Normal: MLK, President Joe & Green Disability: davidwoaks.com/no-new-normal-mlk
Oaks Vlog #1: Mental Health, Disability & Revolution: davidwoaks.com/oaks-vlog-1-mental-health-disability-revolution
Inside Story of My Keynote at Peerpocalypse 2020: davidwoaks.com/my-keynote-at-peerpocalypse-2020
Your Feedback is Very Welcome
Whenever I blog on Mad In America, there are often comments at the bottom, and I try to reply to as many as possible. You are encouraged to comment on that blog, and the URL again is: www.madinamerica.com/2021/06/end-stonewalling-involuntary-outpatient/
You may also comment here and/or you can email me at revolution@aciu.info.
