My name is Maria Cisneros, and I am reaching out to share the devastating experience my family endured. My 17-year-old son, Moises, tragically died by suicide after a relentless battle with depression. What we faced was not merely a failure of the individual but a systemic oversight in the mental health care he received. Moises was hospitalized multiple times, and his doctors, using a blind and archaic process, cycled him through a variety of antidepressants without success. They were operating under the assumption of blind trial and error, trying to address his complex needs without fully understanding the underlying genetic factors that played a crucial role in his condition.

After Moises's passing, a genetic test revealed a severe genetic resistance to standard psychiatric medications, a trait that Moises inherited from me. This discovery highlights an essential breakthrough: Moises did not fail his medication; the system failed him by overlooking his biological makeup. We know now that many cases of treatment-resistant depression can be explained by genetic differences that affect how individuals metabolize medications.

These insights urge us to implement a fundamental change in our approach to mental health care. We call upon the Colorado General Assembly, along with the Colorado House & Senate and Human Service Committees, to pass "Moises's Law." This would mandate genetic testing for patients before starting psychiatric medications to ensure their treatments are informed by biology, not guesswork. Such legislation would empower physicians with crucial information, potentially reducing the trial and error process and minimizing suffering, while tailor-fitting treatments to individuals’ specific genetic codes.

The implementation of Moises’s Law would provide clarity and hope for thousands of individuals and families battling severe mental illness across our nation. Let us honor Moises and prevent further tragedies by using proven scientific tools to deliver personalized, effective mental health care.

Please join me in this crucial effort by signing this petition. Together, we can drive change and ensure that no family has to endure unnecessary tragedy due to systemic shortcomings in mental health treatment. 

When the medical system relies on blind guesswork, the consequences are catastrophic. We need to pass The Moises Law to end the dangerous psychiatric trial-and-error cycle once and for all.

This petition is in loving memory of Moises Diego Cisneros (9/12/05 - 4/27/23), a beautiful soul who fought desperately for his life. Moises didn't just seek help once or twice—he was admitted to care facilities over a handful of times, bravely fighting for his life for several years. Instead of giving him data-driven care, the medical field failed him by continuously playing a blind guessing game with his treatment for years, while he was facilitated he was  prescribing  Zoloft, without knowing his biological makeup. The results were devastating: the medication made Moises severely physically ill, and his suicidal ideation skyrocketed.

Two years after his tragic passing, a pharmacogenomic (genetic) test performed on me his mother,  it revealed the undeniable truth. My official medical report places Zoloft under a red "Do Not Initiate" stop sign it also shows that i am completly resistant to all of the standard antidepressants. The science explains exactly why Moises suffered so severely: Severe Physical Sickness: Genetic variations in the CYP2C19 and CYP2B6 liver enzymes mean the body cannot break down Zoloft properly. The drug rapidly builds up to toxic, sickening levels in the bloodstream. Skyrocketing Suicidal Ideation: Variations in the ABCB1 transporter gene disrupt the protective barrier to the brain, allowing an uncontrolled chemical surge into the central nervous system. This triggers the exact catastrophic spike in suicidality that the FDA warns about. Because these metabolic traits are hereditary, Moises was forced to endure a hazardous chemical roulette across multiple hospitalizations over several years that a simple, non-invasive cheek swab would have prevented. The medical system failed him by guessing, leaving our family permanently heartbroken. We refuse to let other families suffer this preventable tragedy. Every single day, television commercials for psychiatric drugs air a government-mandated Boxed Warning admitting these medications can double the risk of suicidal behavior in young people, peaking in the first few weeks of treatment. Yet, doctors continue to prescribe them completely blind. We demand legally mandated pharmacogenomic testing from the very beginning of all mental health care. Through a simple swab performed before a single pill is prescribed, doctors can look at a patient's DNA. This data reveals exactly how a person will react to specific drugs, ensuring early, precise intervention and protecting patients from dangerous adverse reactions. The FDA itself already includes genetic biomarker labeling or dosing guidance for dozens of commonly prescribed psychiatric drugs.Testing must be mandatory from day one. Proper health care and safe prescribing must be a universal right. Together, we can make a change and shine out the darkness. Please sign to pass The Moises Law. Your signature can help save lives.