On Jan. 17 a federal class action lawsuit was filed against the state of Maryland Department of Human Services (DHS) over inadequate prescription oversight of psychotropic drugs for children in the foster care system—putting them in danger of overdoses and serious side effects.
According to the lawsuit, recent DHS data shows that at least 72.1 percent of children in Maryland foster care who are taking psychotropic drugs “do not have a documented psychiatric diagnosis.”
The lawsuit states that “this could suggest that psychotropic drugs are not administered in response to a diagnosed mental health condition but instead are administered as a form of chemical restraint,” and “at minimum, it evidences inadequate medical record-keeping.”
