Presidential Statement on Recent MAHA Actions Related to Psychiatric Medications
The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) is monitoring recent actions and public statements from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) under the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) initiative related to prescribing psychiatric medications. While AACAP supports thoughtful discussions about improving children’s health, public messaging that broadly and imprecisely challenges established psychiatric diagnoses and evidence‑based treatments poses real risks to children and families.
Untreated mental illness puts children at risk of a variety of negative outcomes including worsening symptoms, excessive suffering, academic failure, social isolation, impaired functioning, and premature death by suicide and other causes. As child and adolescent psychiatrists, we are uniquely trained to evaluate, diagnose, and treat psychiatric disorders in youth. We provide individualized, evidence-based care that prioritizes science driven treatment, shared-decision making, routine monitoring, and recovery as the primary outcome.
Psychiatric medications, including SSRIs, are sometimes part of a broader holistic treatment plan that may include talk therapy, lifestyle and school changes, and family support. When clinically appropriate and properly monitored, these medications are safe, effective, and, for many, lifesaving. Decisions about initiating, adjusting, tapering, or discontinuing medication should remain grounded in medical evidence, sound clinical judgment, and patient-family choice.
At a time when youth mental health needs remain high, AACAP urges policymakers to ensure that decisions affecting access to psychiatric medications and mental health services are grounded in evidence and informed by child and adolescent psychiatrists and other qualified clinicians. AACAP will continue to advocate for high-quality, evidence-based support for children, adolescents, and families.
John Walkup, MD
President, AACAP
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The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry promotes the healthy development of children, adolescents, and families through advocacy, education, and research. Child and adolescent psychiatrists are the leading physician authority on children’s mental health. For more information, please visit www.aacap.org
Media Contact:
Rob Grant, Communications Director
202.966.7300
rgrant@aacap.org
www.aacap.org