Court Overturns FDA Ban On School’s Electric Shock Devices

On July 6, 2021, an appeals court overturned a ban imposed by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on the use of electrical stimulation devices (ESDs) as an aversive conditioning device that provides an electric shock to the skin to reduce the incidence of self-injurious behavior (SIB) or aggressive behavior (AB). The appeals court ruled that a federal ban interfered with the ability of the school’s physicians practice of medicine.

The Judge Rotenberg Center, a residential program in Massachusetts for students with intellectual disabilities, is the only entity that uses the devices as part of part of behavioral . . .