State Initiatives To Assure Appropriate Prescribing Of Antipsychotics To Children

A couple of weeks ago, we took a look at how state Medicaid programs restrict access to antipsychotic drugs for adults (see How Many Health Plans Have “Fail First” Policies For Mental Health Prescriptions?). We talked about how restricting adult access to antipsychotic drugs or requiring them to fail first on a preferred drug is considered ineffectual and sometimes dangerous policy in the mental health field (see also It’s Fail First Again). Following that piece, another reader asked, “Are there specific policies about prescribing antipsychotic medications to children?”

The issues associated with appropriately prescribing antipsychotic medications to children are . . .