MAHA Action Plan to Taper Overprescribing of Psychiatric Medications

On May 4, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), as part of Secretary Kennedy’s Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) campaign, announced its action plan to curb overprescribing of psychiatric medications, particularly to children. HHS seeks to avoid the unnecessary initiation of psychiatric medications and supports their tapering and discontinuation when patients do not realize any clinical benefit. Various HHS agencies are aligning to evaluate prescription patterns for psychiatric medications, assess their benefits and potential harms, and emphasize the role of nonmedication treatment alternatives.