Tony and Lee Ann Christ lost their son, Brian, to a heroin overdose in 2004. But the Falls Church couple say they were left in the dark about their son’s problem until it was too late. Now, they’re pushing to change federal law to ensure that parents are told when their college-age children need help. The University of Virginia had recommended that Brian Christ seek treatment for alcohol abuse when he was a freshman, but Tony Christ says he was never notified. Three years of drinking led to a heroin addiction and ultimately his son’s death.
“My wife and I don’t want any other parents to go through what we went through, and not know,” he said. “They need to know if a kid’s in trouble.”
Christ, who has pushed for the measure for years, this year won the support of the Virginia House of Delegates, which overwhelmingly approved a resolution carried by House Speaker William J. Howell, R-Stafford, urging Congress to require colleges and universities to notify parents of their child’s destructive or illegal behavior. Such notification is now barred by federal privacy laws.
To protect student privacy, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act prohibits the release to parents any of the education records of students who are 18 years old or older. The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act bars the release of a student’s health records without the student’s permission. Those laws cut off parents’ access to records that would show if their child was having disciplinary problems, suffering from addiction, depression or life-threatening illnesses.”I think the speaker did a great job, and there was tremendous bipartisan support,” said Christ. “It was the view of the House in Virginia that this is not a [partisan] matter, and that something needs to be done.”
But a Senate committee recently killed its version of the Christ resolution introduced by Senate Majority Leader Richard Saslaw, D-Fairfax, on the grounds that the Senate typically does not pass such “memorializing resolutions.”
Instead, Senate Rules Committee Chairwoman Mary Margaret Whipple, D-Arlington, said she would write to Sens. Mark Warner and Jim Webb, both Virginia Democrats, as well as Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., to bring their attention to the issue.
Indeed, Christ says he’s going to keep up the fight — even if he has to take it directly to D.C. and speak with Congress. He’s already reached out to the office of House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio.
“There’s just an intrinsic right,” Christ said. “Every parent has a right to know when their kid’s in trouble.”
