A Kentucky mother is being threatened with an investigation by child protective services after she refused to allow her children to be placed under anesthesia for dental procedures recommended by her children’s “school dental program.”
Alicia McQueen, the mother of two young children in the Laurel County School District in Southeastern Kentucky, has gone viral after posting a TikTok video asking for legal advice. The video quickly attracted outrage, gathering over 7,000 comments in a matter of days.
In her video, posted on March 18, McQueen explained that in her area of Kentucky, programs are offered for children who don’t have access to healthcare, especially dental work. Her children were sent home from school with a consent form indicating they would receive a free teeth cleaning as part of one of these programs.
“They have a dentist come out in this big tour bus and they do the cleaning. And was like ok, whatever!” She then explained that she later received a piece of paper in the mail claiming that both of her children had “abnormalities” and she would need to consent for further treatment. McQueen said this took her by surprise, as the children’s family dentist told her that no such abnormalities existed.
“My children go to the dentist on a regular basis – every 6 months to a year. There are no cavities, no decay. I called the school and they said ‘we have no control over that, you will have to wait until the dentist calls you.”
McQueen said that a woman later called her and explained what was “wrong” with her children’s teeth. She then told the woman that it seemed odd that in a matter of 6 months, her children’s teeth were already decaying and that they would need root canals and further procedures.
The woman told McQueen that they were sending her another consent form, and requested she provide them with her insurance information.
“She told me that once the procedures were being done, which would be done over a consecutive amount of days, that my children would have to miss school because they’ll have to be placed under that laughing gas, anesthesia. I was then told that I would not be allowed to be there. And they would call me whenever it was time to pick them up,” she said.
McQueen immediately became suspicious and refused, saying that she would call her children’s regular dentist instead. After an appointment, the dentist stated that there was nothing wrong with the children’s teeth requiring surgery.
“They both have baby teeth that they are losing but there were no signs of cavities or decay. [Our] dentist showed me the scans,” McQueen said.
The mother then revealed that just a few days before she decided to make her TikTok video, the school dentist called her and stated that even though she had not returned a signed consent form, that her children were scheduled for several surgeries on separate days.
Despite her indicating that their family dentist had confirmed the children did not need any work done, the school’s dentist, who the school refused to name, told her the children would be required to undergo surgeries anyway.
“I said no, you are not touching my kids. Then the lady on the phone said ‘what are you talking about? Don’t you care about the priority of your kids, because it looks like your kids never brush their teeth.” McQueen explained to the woman that she had already taken her children to their regular family dentist, and they were healthy.
McQueen noted that the school refused to show her the dental records indicating there was a problem with her children’s teeth, instead continuing to insist they needed her insurance information. Bizarrely, she then received a letter from the school board informing her that the amount of days scheduled by the school dentist would result in her being charged with truancy.
After a confusing back-and-forth with the school, McQueen was told she would be placed under investigation because she was refusing to sign the consent forms for her children to get the dental surgery.
McQueen has confirmed that her insurance company told her that there is a pending anesthesia charge against her account.
Speaking to The Publica, McQueen expressed her frustration and anxiety with the situation.
“As a parent, your top priority is the safety of your kids. What started with a letter sent home from school pertaining to a free cleaning or exam for dental health turned into a nightmare I didn’t see coming,” she said. “Receiving a call at work stating my kids, who are 6 and 7, had several ‘abnormalities’ that needed days if not weeks worth of dental care, and to have them put to sleep multiple times to perform dental work that I could not be present for didn’t sit right with me.”
McQueen continued by reiterating that her family dentist confirmed that her children required none of the surgeries their school’s dentist was demanding. She also noted that the family’s dentist told her to “be careful” and to keep fighting on behalf of her kids.
“[Our dentist] constantly sees kids needing dental work fixed after issues caused by the school program. I was told that [child protective services] has been getting involved, removing kids from their homes, claiming parents are neglecting them for refusing treatment that’s not needed, and in most cases the unnecessary dental work being done affects their adult teeth as they get older.”
McQueen says that since she released her TikTok video, she has been contacted by parents across the country with similar stories, some of which are shocking.
Some of the parents who have contacted McQueen says their children suffered tooth decay, tooth loss, infections, hospitalizations and even sexual assault while in the care of school dentists.
“ I was told to let the issue go and move on as if my concerns for the safety of my children didn’t matter. I hope I can help prevent this, if not save another parent from this awful feeling of what could have or shouldn’t happen that would affect them the rest of their life.”
The Publica reached out to Kentucky House Representative Josh Calloway, and informed him of the situation with the McQueen family. Representative Calloway said he would be “more than glad to see how he could help.”
McQueen has been connected with Rep. Calloway, who told The Publica that “parental rights are fundamental and transparency concerning their child’s health is the most basic of those rights.”
