Right-wing media fuel ADHD hate, Labour promote “overdiagnosis” propaganda

The Telegraph is inciting hatred of disabled kids, again. The right-wing shit rag published a piece suggesting parents are forcing ADHD diagnoses for benefits. Coincidentally, this comes just as the Department of Health and Social Care has published an interim report into their review on whether the condition is overdiagnosed.

Shit rags spreading ADHD hate

The Telegraph ran with the headline:

I’m a GP, and I’m tired of putting children on the ADHD bandwagon

Arguing that:

There are perverse incentives that may be driving some parents towards getting their child a diagnosis

The ‘perverse incentives’ Dr. Katie Musgrave talks about are, of course, SEND support and welfare benefits.

This being the Telegraph, Musgrave thought it was relevant to detail that 276,000 children get Disability Living Allowance for ‘behavioural disorders.’ She then links it to the rising number of people claiming PIP for conditions such as ADHD. This both belittles the condition and vilifies concerned parents.

Instead of highlighting, as a doctor, how dire a state the NHS is in and that this has led to never-ending waiting lists, Musgrave blames this on the number of ADHD referrals. She then accuses parents of going through ‘Right to Choose’ as it’s seen as an easier route to getting a diagnosis.

The good doctor says that, actually, kids just need to get off their iPads and go outside:

Many children in the UK are faced with significant social and developmental challenges, but that does not excuse the current system which classifies an increasing proportion of children as having a disability. Sadly, many of these young people go on to become dependent on state benefits, and face a future of unemployment. The government would be better off investing in sports and social activities for children and young people. All children – but perhaps especially those with additional needs – benefit from getting off screens, becoming more physically active and interacting with others.

She concludes:

Perverse incentives are currently labelling a generation of children as neuro-diverse, while locking many into a dependence on state benefits: which is neither good for the individual, nor the economy. The whole system needs to be made more accessible, pragmatic, and equitable. This is public money we are talking about, after all; and children’s lives.

Just a coincidence, right?

It must be a massive coincidence that the Telegraph has put out this blatant propaganda designed to turn people against disabled people this week. Especially since the Department of Health and Social Care have also released their interim report into the Independent review into mental health conditions, ADHD and autism. 

The review will look into the increase in diagnoses and the ‘strain’ that is putting on the NHS. It’s being carried out at the same time as the DWP is changing PIP eligibility. With a spate of hate around the increase in claimants with neurodivergent and mental health conditions, it’s easy to see that this review would give Labour the ammunition to cut benefits.

But as much as the interim report tries to blame things such as TikTok for the increase in the conditions, it has to admit that this is bullshit. Whilst it does try to claim that TikTok is a catalyst, the report then has to contradict itself.

These developments are not solely associated with increased diagnostic demand. Many observers emphasise that online communities, peer networks and advocacy groups have also played an important role in increasing awareness of mental health and neurodevelopmental conditions, reducing stigma and enabling individuals to find explanation and community where their experiences were previously misunderstood or dismissed. For some individuals, such spaces provide validation, a sense of identity, practical advice and a sense of belonging that may not have been available through formal services.

Honestly, the report is just a big example of the review trying to come to its own foregone conclusion, but being headed off at every pass with the facts that ADHD and other conditions aren’t overdiagnosed.

That’s why it’s especially interesting that the press is running with this narrative. Whilst The Telegraph article doesn’t specifically mention the report, the Times reported 

Children and young adults are “incentivised” to get diagnosed with ADHD and autism and there has been a “medicalisation of distress”, a government inquiry has concluded.

Firstly, this is untrue because the review hasn’t ‘concluded,’ it’s an interim report. Secondly the report isn’t being run by experts in this particular area. In fact 32 ADHD experts have already disproved that it’s overdiagnosed.

Labour turning the public against disabled people, again

It’s incredible that the press is still running with stories of overdiagnosis for benefits when the report itself struggles to pin the blame on benefits.

Not to suggest that this is a pre-agreed or planted narrative, but the government does have a previous history when it comes to disabled benefits claimants.

While the report might be an 85-page cluster fuck that ties itself in knots trying to blame benefits fakers despite the evidence says otherwise, one thing is clear.

The government will try as much as possible to convince the public that ADHD and other conditions are overdiagnosed, so there won’t be an uproar when they strip vulnerable people of vital benefits.