JB Pritzker launches mandatory 'mental health screenings' for school children—to be run by state board of ed

A bill signed into law in late July by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker is receiving backlash, with parents, experts, and lawmakers saying the measure requiring annual mental health screenings for public school students is an overreach.

Pritzker signed SB 1560 into law on July 31, which requires schools to give mental health screenings to students in third grade and higher at least once per year, beginning in the 2027-28 school year. The screening tools and guidelines will be developed by the Illinois State Board of Education by September 2026 and carried out by school districts.

Education officials in the state have said that the screenings would not be diagnostic, but instead designed to flag students who may need additional evaluation, per Fox News. Chief Officer of the governor’s Children’s Behavioral Health Transformation Initiative, Dana Weiner, said that screenings would be optional for families and conducted privately.

State Superintendent Tony Sanders said in a statement, "Mental health is essential to academic readiness and lifelong success. Too often, we only recognize a student’s distress when it becomes a crisis. With universal screening, we shift from reaction to prevention."

Pritzker said, "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."

Democratic State Sen. Laura Fine, the lead sponsor of the bill, said, "The screenings will be designed to catch the early signs of anxiety, depression, or trauma before it becomes a crisis or, in some cases, sometimes too late."

The bill has come under fire, however, with critics calling it an overreach. Manhattan Institute Senior Fellow Abigail Schrier 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, said, "If a school nurse or a state-mandated mental health test tells you you’re sick, you’re going to believe them. This is why so many families are opting out of primary school completely — the overreach is astounding."

GOP State Rep. Steve Reick said, "Universal mental health screenings are going to get us nothing except possibly finding things, finding reasons for denial of coverage of insurance."