From Fox News: A new Illinois law requiring annual mental health screenings for public school students is drawing backlash from parents, policy experts and lawmakers who warn the policy may overstep boundaries and wrongly label children.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker signed the measure on July 31, making Illinois the first state in the country to mandate mental health screenings for students in grades three through 12.
The law, set to take effect in the 2027–2028 school year, directs schools to provide self-conducted screenings each year using digital or paper forms. Parents will have the ability to opt their children out.
Supporters say the initiative will help schools identify early signs of depression, anxiety or trauma — before they develop into crises. But critics argue the plan could create more problems than it solves.
Gov. Pritzker, a Democrat, touted the new policy in a post on X last week, writing, “Illinois is now the first state in the nation to require mental health screenings in its public schools. Our schools should be inclusive places where students are not just comfortable asking for help — they’re empowered to do it.”
Illinois is now the first state in the nation to require mental health screenings in its public schools.
Our schools should be inclusive places where students are not just comfortable asking for help — they’re empowered to do it. https://t.co/hQnDs0JQ2j
— Governor JB Pritzker (@GovPritzker) August 2, 2025
Pritzker is being blasted by many on social media.
Dr. Mike Libby MD. Esq. wrote, “This is how this slob of a governor takes even more power from parents. Home school your children Illinois! Don’t let this government anywhere near your kids. Don’t believe me? Look at Chicago.”
This is how this slob of a governor takes even more power from parents.
Home school your children Illinois!
Don’t let this government anywhere near your kids.
Don’t believe me?
Look at Chicago
— Dr. Mike Libby MD. Esq. (@BasementLoner) August 2, 2025
Alex Napier Holland wrote, “You are destroying their mental health. You have trained a generation of young people to obsess over any negative feelings — this is proven to destroy mental health. Please read ‘The Coddling of the American Mind’ by Jonathan Haidt — he explains this all.”
You are destroying their mental health.
You have trained a generation of young people to obsess over any negative feelings — this is proven to destroy mental health.
Please read ‘The Coddling of the American Mind’ by Jonathan Haidt — he explains this all.
— Alex Napier Holland 🦍 (@NapierHolland) August 5, 2025
Podcaster and author Matt Walsh blasted Pritzker, declaring, “This is a terrible policy put in place by devious people with evil intentions. They’ll have every kid in the school drugged up on psychiatric meds in no time. Just feeding kids to Big Pharma like coal into a furnace. Awful.”
This is a terrible policy put in place by devious people with evil intentions. They’ll have every kid in the school drugged up on psychiatric meds in no time. Just feeding kids to Big Pharma like coal into a furnace. Awful. https://t.co/8GmwzApgaD
— Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) August 8, 2025
Abigail Shrier, a fellow at the Manhattan Institute, wrote, “I want to be on-the-record and crystal clear. This is a disastrous policy that will do vastly more harm than good. Watch as tens of thousands of Illinois kids get shoved into the mental health funnel and convinced they are sick. Many or most of which will be false positives.”
Katherine Boyle, a partner at venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, added, “The mental health industrial complex is destroying children. If a school nurse or a state-mandated mental health test tells you you’re sick, you’re going to believe them. My kids aren’t getting anywhere near this nonsense, but many parents won’t be paying attention until it’s too late. This is why so many families are opting out of primary school completely— the overreach is astounding. Mental health tests shouldn’t be mandated by the state.”
The mental health industrial complex is destroying children. If a school nurse or a state-mandated mental health test tells you you’re sick, you’re going to believe them.
My kids aren’t getting anywhere near this nonsense, but many parents won’t be paying attention until it’s… https://t.co/CeUD4ZKXrw
— Katherine Boyle (@KTmBoyle) August 7, 2025
More backlash below…
Disastrous. A screening test in a healthy population guarantees a high % of false positives.
In this case that means most of the kids who get “screening” into a mental health diagnosis will actually be healthy.
Pritzker’s no genius, but even he knows this. He just doesn’t care. https://t.co/D4ddSyFu6X
— David McCune, M.D. (@davidemccune) August 9, 2025
This is truly outrageous. It is a usurpation of parental rights. When our schools are failing to achieve education excellence, what makes these arrogant politicians than they will conduct mental health screenings properly? Litigation must begin to stop this. https://t.co/LgjnCySNmA
— John Tillman (@JohnMTillman) August 9, 2025
This is the worst idea I’ve ever heard. I was put on mental health drugs against my will at 14. I didn’t know any better and they ruined my life. I just got worse and worse until I finally got off of them 20 years later. You will regret this.
— Terrible Quality Memes (@BadQualityMemes) August 7, 2025
“Illinois is now the first state in the nation to take mental health decisions away from parents in public schools.”
Because, they’re our kids, not yours you idiot parents…
— 🇺🇸 (@BosunPipe) August 2, 2025
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