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By Jordan Lindsey, Executive Director, The Arc & UCP California Collaboration
For decades disability community has advocated to ban the use of shock as a form of therapy, but a last-minute provision was added to a bill in Congress that would have stopped the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) from permanently banning these devices.
On July 10, the House of Representatives’ Appropriations Committee voted on the bill but in a bipartisan agreement removed the provision permitting shock therapy. The members of the Committee recognized the hard work by advocates to raise the issue. Congratulations to all advocates across the country, including specific actions taken in California, and to The Arc of United States for their tireless efforts on this issue. Now all efforts are focused on getting the FDA to finally ban the devices through their authority and rule making process.
Background: For decades, people with intellectual and developmental disabilities have been subjected to electrical shock treatment at the Judge Rotenberg Center, an institution in Massachusetts. Residents are forced to wear a shock device, and staff members use remote controls to administer a shock for perceived misbehavior. This is the only place in the country that uses this barbaric and inhumane practice, despite substantial evidence that the shocks are painful and traumatizing to residents.