Hey, Poor, Stupid Kid – Here’s Some Adderall!

The New York Times just took a look at adderall usage among children in low income families. They found that doctors are giving out the drug to kids who don’t really need it, just so that they can keep up in school and get good grades. Parents are on board as well, Medicare covers the cost of these drugs for their children.

Pediatrician Dr.Michael Anderson, out of Atlanta, had this to say, ““I don’t have a whole lot of choice. We’ve decided as a society that it’s too expensive to modify the kid’s environment. So we have to modify the kid.”

Another pediatrician and child neurologist, Dr. William Graf, said, “These children are still in the developmental phase, and we still don’t know how these drugs biologically affect the developing brain. There’s an obligation for parents, doctors and teachers to respect the authenticity issue, and I’m not sure that’s always happening.”

Is it worth it for kids to get good grades, but at the same time be popping pills? Does their learning experience become disingenuous?

Read more at nytimes.com.