During Mental Health Awareness Month, we are leaning into our role to improve understanding in the policy community of ADHD and the experiences of individuals and families impacted by it. This is particularly critical and timely as conversations around mental health and psychiatric medications continue to evolve at the national policy level.
These conversations impact individuals, families, clinicians, and educators in deeply personal ways, which is why we continue to work to ensure that policy discussions include diverse voices and lived experiences.
Following HHS Secretary Kennedy’s recent announcement that the government will be working to address what he referred to as “overprescribing” for psychiatric conditions like ADHD, we have been in touch with the federal agencies charged with putting those efforts into effect. Our task is to give the ADHD a seat at the table as DC health policy officials advance the Administration’s goals of de-prescribing. While much has been said and written underscoring over-prescribing of psychiatric medications, Washington policymakers need to understand that there is also under-diagnosis of ADHD, and there are millions of Americans who have ADHD and require both medical and non-medical treatment to manage it. We’ll be working to make certain that the clinician training, drug payment incentives and other measures that the Administration wants to push forward reflect this reality, and the interests of all ADHD stakeholders.
Our point of view and work was recently highlighted in the Psychiatric Times, which reported: “Mindful Choices endorsed improved clinician training and objective ADHD diagnostics, advocating collaboration to deprescribe inappropriate polypharmacy while expanding medical and nonmedical tools to optimize care.”
As we continue this important dialogue with national policy leaders, we’ll continue to unpack the needs of our stakeholder community relative to what’s happening in our orbit. Be with us for those efforts! We invite you to join us for our upcoming Virtual Summer Summit Series, Thriving in Transition: Reimagining ADHD Care for Young Adults, where we’ll bring together patients, caregivers, clinicians, educators, and policymakers to discuss the future of ADHD care and support, especially for the young adult community.