New Research Finds Increased Cardiovascular Risks from Taking Even a Single Dose of Someone Else’s Prescription Stimulant

Posted on March 30, 2026 by cchrstl

New study addresses the increasing number of students taking stimulant drugs without a prescription, hoping for enhanced cognitive performance, though recent research has not found improvement in cognitive ability or academic performance from using stimulants.

by  CCHR National Affairs Office

In response to the increasing misuse and diversion of stimulants prescribed for so-called attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), a new study reports that a single dose of Adderall consumed for occasional or recreational use can have acute cardiovascular effects. 

“An increasing number of high school and college students are taking Adderall without prescription, abusing these drugs for both cognitive enhancement and recreational use to enhance performance in tests and sports, respectively,”  wrote  researcher Anna Svatikova, M.D., Ph.D., of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.  “There are a myriad of adverse effects from Adderall consumption….  Sudden cardiac death, cardiomyopathy, stroke, and myocardial infarction due to Adderall consumption have been documented in individual case reports.”

The new  study  was designed to replicate the conditions of college students who use Adderall without a prescription.  It assessed the results of giving 29 healthy young adults who were not stimulant users either a single 25 mg Adderall pill – less than half of the average 60 mg dose given to adult patients for “ADHD” but more than the typical 10 mg starting dose – or a placebo on the first day.  Roughly 10 days later, they were given the other pill.  Blood pressure and heart rate were measured before and three hours after administration of the drug or placebo.

The results three hours later were significant increases in blood pressure and heart rate in the participants given Adderall.  Resting systolic blood pressure rose from 116 to 126, diastolic blood pressure from 72 to 78, and heart rate from 60 to 70 beats per minute – outcomes characterized by the researchers as “striking results” in participants at rest three hours later.  No such increases occurred when participants were given placebos.

The higher measures could potentially increase the risk of more serious cardiovascular outcomes, as well as point to an explanation for the increased emergency room visits associated with the misuse of Adderall, the study suggests.  The cardiovascular results could be even worse if energy drinks are consumed at the same time as Adderall to stay awake.  The  study  was recently published in  Mayo Clinic Proceedings, along with an editorial drawing attention to the study results.

The number of American children and adults given a diagnosis of so-called attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has soared over the six decades since psychologist Keith Connors, “the father of ADHD,” first coined the term for inattentive, impulsive or restless behavior.  Since there is no exact scientific basis for a “diagnosis” of ADHD, determinations of this “psychiatric disorder” became rampant, leading Connors ultimately to  declare  that the overdiagnosis of ADHD was “an epidemic of tragic proportions.”

Currently, 1 in 9 American children (11.4%) under the age of 18 has received a “diagnosis” of ADHD, according to 2022 data from a national survey of parents.  That translates to an estimated 7 million school-age children.

Rising right alongside the widespread “diagnosis” of ADHD is the steadily increasing number of prescriptions for drugs as treatment. Currently, 90% of prescriptions for ADHD treatment are for stimulants.  Prescription stimulants include Adderall, Ritalin, Concerta, and Dexedrine.

The overdiagnosis of ADHD and surge in prescriptions of stimulants is the result of sophisticated, multi-decade marketing by drug manufacturers, which broadened the perception of ADHD to include relatively normal behavior like carelessness or impatience, according to a 2013 investigation  by the  New York Times.

“The rise of ADHD diagnoses and prescriptions for stimulants over the years coincided with a remarkably successful two-decade campaign by pharmaceutical companies to publicize the syndrome and promote the pills to doctors, educators and parents,”  Times  reporter Alan Schwarz wrote.

Stimulants prescriptions continue to rise.  From 2012 to 2023, the total number of Americans prescribed stimulants increased by 48%, from 11.1 million to 16.5 million, with the largest yearly increase (18%) in 2022-23, according to a report prepared for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).  For the first time, nurse practitioners were the top prescribers, followed by psychiatrists.

The DEA report reveals that adults are now the fastest-growing segment of stimulant prescriptions, as “diagnosis” of “adult ADHD” becomes more prevalent. 

“From 2012 to 2023, stimulant prescriptions for patients aged 31-40 increased by 240%; at over 18 million, they are now the largest single age group for stimulants prescriptions,” the DEA’s report discloses.  Prescriptions also increased by 164% for patients aged 41-50, by 161% for ages 61-70, and by 516% for ages 71-80.  The only decline was a 19% decrease in stimulant prescriptions for children aged 0-10.

Stimulants are classified as Schedule II controlled substances, in the same category as cocaine, methamphetamine (meth), oxycodone (OxyContin), and fentanyl because of their high potential for misuse, abuse, physical and psychological dependence, addiction, overdose, and diversion.  

The illegal diversion of prescribed stimulant drugs from patients to others, particularly among children and young adults, is a pressing problem.   Studies  have found that a range of 16% to 29% of students from grade school through college were asked to give or sell their prescribed stimulants. 

Whether taking a stimulant really leads to any cognitive advantage is questionable.  Recent studies have found  no improvement in cognitive ability or academic performance and no convincing evidence of any long-term benefit to children from taking stimulant drugs. 

In response to the misuse and overdose problems with prescription stimulants, the FDA awarded a grant to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine in 2023 to research and reconsider the diagnosis and treatment of ADHD.  The research is expected to be used in developing alternatives to prescription stimulants as treatment.

The content on this site is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for personal medical advice given by a physician or other qualified healthcare provider.

Anyone wishing to discontinue or change the dose of a prescription stimulant or other psychiatric drug is cautioned to do so only under the supervision of a physician because of potentially dangerous withdrawal symptoms or other complications.

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Take Action – Missouri Legislature

Posted on March 23, 2026 by cchrstl

Psychiatry’s Continued Attacks on Missouri Citizens

This session of the Missouri Legislature has several bills demonstrating the psychiatric industry’s continued attempts to defraud and abuse citizens.

There seems to be a concerted effort in several states this year to pass laws allowing court-ordered “Assisted Outpatient Treatment”, also known as involuntary outpatient treatment.

Such bills are ongoing in Oklahoma, Illinois, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Iowa as well as in Missouri. They lower the standard for involuntary treatment from a person being dangerous to just being “in need of treatment,” or euphemistically “clinical deterioration,” a completely subjective evaluation.

This is a concerning push for coercive psychiatric treatment which the Council of Europe, the United Nations and the World Health Organization have each called for stopping.

Guidance issued jointly in 2023 by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) lays out steps towards ending coercive practices and “establishing mental health services that are respectful of human dignity and comply with international human rights norms and standards.”

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has not yet come into alignment with this international standard, evidenced by this concerted effort to make it much easier to psychiatrically treat someone against their will.

Read more about involuntary commitment here:

https://cchrstl.org/invcommit.shtml

Very Very Bad Bills

SB 1015, Sponsor: Maggie Nurrenbern, Creates provisions for involuntary outpatient treatment

HB 2088, Sponsor: Aaron Crossley, Creates provisions relating to court-ordered involuntary outpatient treatment for persons with mental disorders

HB 2512, Sponsor: Tricia Byrnes, Creates provisions relating to humane access to emergency psychiatric treatment. This is called the “Care Before Predictable Harm Act”.

HB 3313, Sponsor: Carolyn Caton, Creates provisions relating to court-ordered involuntary outpatient treatment for persons with mental disorders

If passed into law these would require a licensed physician’s testimony and a written treatment plan to force court-ordered outpatient psychiatric treatment on someone. Such “treatment” could be, for example, the administration of psychotropic drugs (such as long-acting injectable antipsychotic drugs); monitoring the individual’s daily life and reporting compliance with treatment; individual or group therapy sessions; mandatory drug testing and enrollment in sobriety programs. The court could also mandate that the individual accept assistance with housing, employment, or other community resources. They could also spell out Crisis intervention services in case of a mental health emergency.

If the person does not comply with the treatment plan, the court could order their involuntary commitment to a psychiatric facility without a hearing.

What can we say about this? “Psychiatry does not commit human rights abuse. It is a human rights abuse.” – Thomas Szasz

Just take a look at one or more of the CCHR web sites to start to understand how very bad these bills are

https://www.cchrstl.org

https://www.cchr.org

https://www.cchrint.org

The Missouri Legislature

The Missouri General Assembly is the state legislature of the State of Missouri and is composed of two chambers: the House of Representatives and the Senate. The General Assembly is responsible for creating laws for governing the State of Missouri. The Revised Statutes of Missouri (RSMo) are electronically available on this site:  https://revisor.mo.gov/main/Home.aspx.

You can find your Representative and Senator, and their contact information, by entering your 9-digit zip code here.

The current Session this year (103rd General Assembly, 2nd Regular Session) convened on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, and will end on Friday, May 15, 2026. You can see all of the House Bills (HB) by clicking here; and the Senate Bills (SB) are listed here.

If you are not a voting resident of Missouri, you can find out about legislation in your own state and write your own state legislators; also, we are looking for volunteers to monitor legislation in Missouri and the states surrounding Missouri — let us know if you’d like to help out.

You can also help out by sending CCHR STL a tax-deductible monetary donation so that we can continue to alert you to these issues.

Check out our handy discussion about How to write to a legislator.

We Urge You To Contact Your Legislators To Express Your Own Viewpoints.

Please write, call or visit to express your viewpoint as an individual or professional, and not as a representative of any organization.Let us know the details and any responses you get. The full text of each bill can be found on the House and Senate Joint Bill Tracking site. Just put the bill number into the search box (e.g. SB123 or HB123).

While this list is not all the bad bills, and does not include any of the good bills, we’ve chosen the worst of the bad’uns to get you going on contacting your legislators!

Decide for yourself and take action.

Summary

Instead of these failed psychiatric approaches, the emphasis must be on workable mental healing methods that improve and strengthen individuals and thereby society by restoring people to personal strength, ability, competence, confidence, stability, responsibility and spiritual well-being. Psychiatric drugs and psychiatric treatments are not workable.

Read the text of these bills to see how they encourage psychiatric fraud and abuse, and urge your Missouri state legislators to reject pro-psych bills in their current form.

The real problem is that psychiatrists fraudulently diagnose life’s problems as an “illness”, and stigmatize unwanted behavior as “diseases.” Psychiatry’s stigmatizing labels, programs and treatments are harmful junk science; their diagnoses of “mental disorders” are a hoax – unscientific, fraudulent and harmful. All psychiatric treatments, not just psychiatric drugs, are dangerous.

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Missouri Psychiatrist Shazia Malik Pleads Guilty to False Claims; Pays $360K Civil Settlement

Posted on March 16, 2026 by cchrstl

On December 11, 2025, St. Louis psychiatrist Shazia Malik pleaded guilty in federal court to making false statements related to health care billing after admitting she submitted claims for services that were not eligible for reimbursement while she was outside the United States.

Malik entered a guilty plea in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri to two counts of Making False Statements in Connection with Health Care Matters. According to a plea agreement filed in the case, Malik admitted knowingly submitting or causing false claims to be submitted to Medicare, Medicaid and private health insurers.

Prosecutors said Malik, who practiced with organizations including Psych Care Consultants LLC and Serenity Health LLC, traveled to Pakistan on Dec. 25, 2019, and remained there until Feb. 24, 2020. During that time, she caused claims to be submitted that represented she had performed reimbursable psychiatric services even though she was outside the United States.

Federal health programs and many private insurers do not reimburse claims for services performed outside the country. Malik admitted the claims falsely indicated that she had provided services that complied with those reimbursement rules.

One example cited in the plea agreement involved a claim submitted to Medicare on Dec. 8, 2020, stating that Malik conducted an office visit and psychotherapy session with a patient on Jan. 27, 2020. In reality, she was in Pakistan that day and the services were therefore not reimbursable.

Authorities said the fraudulent claims resulted in a total loss of $3,110.85 to Medicare, Medicaid and private insurers, including United Healthcare, Aetna, Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, Cigna and Humana.

Under the plea agreement, prosecutors and the defense jointly recommended a sentence of one year of probation. Malik also agreed to surrender her Drug Enforcement Administration registration and to pay restitution totaling $3,110.85. Each count carries a statutory maximum penalty of five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000, though the parties’ recommended sentence is significantly lower.

Separately, The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Missouri and Malik reached a $360,000 civil settlement to resolve allegations that she submitted false claims to Medicare and Missouri Medicaid between Jan. 1, 2019, and May 31, 2024.

According to federal officials, the settlement resolved claims that Malik billed federal health programs for psychotherapy sessions she claimed to have personally conducted, including instances when she was out of town or when the services were provided by other practitioners.

The settlement requires Malik to pay $155,000 in restitution to Medicare and $25,000 to Missouri Medicaid, amounts that were doubled under the False Claims Act to reach the $360,000 total. The civil agreement does not include an admission of liability.

Sources:  “Psychiatrist Reaches Civil Settlement of $360,000 to Resolve Allegations of False Claims to Federal Health Care Programs,” U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of Missouri, March 9, 2026; Guilty Plea Agreement, United States of America v. Shazia Malik, M.D., Case no. 4:25-wi-00025 ZMB, US District Court – Eastern District of Missouri, December 11, 2025; and  “Missouri psychiatrist pays $360K in Medicare fraud settlement,” KTTN News, March 10, 2026.

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New Study Details Abuse of Patients by Staff at Inpatient Psychiatric Facilities

Posted on March 2, 2026 by cchrstl

Patients report physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, neglect, and human rights violations that leave them feeling lonely, humiliated, and powerless.

by  CCHR National Affairs Office

A new study has brought needed attention to the abuse of psychiatric patients by staff in mental health settings, including in the U.S. mental health system.  The researchers call for stronger legal protections for mental health patients and reforms to mental health systems to ensure services are patient-centered, delivered without coercion, and uphold human rights. 

Noting that studies on patient safety rarely directly address the violence and abuse perpetrated by healthcare professionals, researchers from Kansai Medical University and Japan Centre for Evidence-Based Practice conducted a  review  of existing medical literature to establish, among various objectives, the nature and rate of occurrence of abuse perpetrated by staff in mental health service settings.

Among 61 published studies and reviews focusing on this abuse, 12 studies reported on the prevalence, though four used the same underlying dataset.  The studies involved data collected from 622 patients, 208 healthcare staff, and public records.  All the studies concerned abuse by staff in inpatient psychiatric facilities.

Participants in the studies “described feelings of physical and psychological threat, dehumanization, being ignored, having their care requests neglected and receiving coercive treatment that was perceived as unethical,” according to the review.  “They also described emotional responses such as loneliness, humiliation, powerlessness and loss of trust in healthcare professionals.”

The researchers grouped the acts of abuse into six categories.  Rather than calculating a single figure for the prevalence of each category of abuse, the researchers presented the range for each category that encompassed the ranges from all included studies.

  • Physical abuse, which included excessive physical force and assault, was reported by a range of 5%-65% of participants in the studies. 
  • Psychological abuse, including verbal insults and threats, was reported by 0%-79%. 
  • Sexual abuse, reported by 0%-21%, included unwanted sexual contact or advances. 
  • Economic abuse, such as theft or unauthorized use of patients’ property by staff, was reported by 15%-36%. 
  • Neglect, meaning lack of access to basic care, such as meals, was reported by 0%-79%. 
  • Human rights violations from dehumanizing treatment, such as being subjected to hours in restraints or seclusion, or being forced to undress in view of others, were reported by 5%-61% of participants.

“Our findings suggest that preventing abuse in psychiatric settings requires both attention to individual attitudes and behaviors, and structural and cultural changes within healthcare institutions,” the researchers concluded.  Their review was published in  BMJ Open.

They also noted that a trend of increased attention to the issue of abuse by psychiatric facility staff “may reflect growing professional and societal concern about coercive practices in psychiatric care.”

Coercive psychiatric practices include involuntary hospitalization, forced psychiatric drugging, involuntary electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), seclusion, and physical, chemical and mechanical restraint.

Since 1969, the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) has been a global leader in the fight to eliminate coercive and abusive psychiatric practices and expose the harm and fraud in involuntary psychiatric detention and treatment. 

International human rights standards now call for ending coercive psychiatric practices and replacing them with human rights-based approaches to mental health.  This position is backed up by research, such as a 2023 study indicating  no benefit to patients’ mental health condition and no reduction in their risk of suicide after receiving nonconsensual mental health treatment. 

The issue of coercive practices was prominently  addressed  in 2021 by the World Health Organization (WHO) and in 2023 in  guidance  published jointly by WHO and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, calling on governments to adopt “zero coercion” policies. 

“People subjected to coercive practices report feelings of dehumanization, disempowerment, being disrespected and disengaged from decisions on issues affecting them,” according to the  WHO.  “Many experience it as a form of trauma or re-traumatization leading to a worsening of their condition and increased experiences of distress.”

In 2022, Europe’s leading human rights assembly, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe,  urged  the Council’s 46 member states to take action against forced institutionalization.  The Council underscored this commitment last month by  rejecting  a draft protocol for mental health settings that would have expanded involuntary psychiatric detention and treatment across Europe, making it “more difficult to abolish coercive practices in mental health services,” according to the Council.

Although the European Psychiatric Association  indicated  in 2024 that a reduction of coercive practices in psychiatry was a priority, it instead supported the draft protocol that would have further entrenched involuntary psychiatric detention and treatment, which the Council of Europe rejected.

The World Psychiatric Association (WPA), while not renouncing coercive practices, ratified a position  statement  in 2023 that called for implementing alternatives to coercion in psychiatric practices.  The WPA admitted, “There is widespread agreement that coercive practices are over-used” in psychiatry.

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has thus far refused to issue a position statement aligned with international human rights standards.  In its most recent (2020) “Position Statement on Voluntary and Involuntary Hospitalization of Adults with Mental Illness,” the APA continues to  support  the use of coercive practices.

The content on this site is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for personal medical advice given by a physician or other healthcare provider.

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CCHR Helps Secure Europe’s Rejection of Forced Psychiatry

Posted on February 16, 2026 by cchrstl

Landmark Vote Affirms Coercive Practices Violate Human Rights

In a landmark unanimous decision, a key body of the Council of Europe, the continent’s leading organization that sets human rights standards, rejected a proposed psychiatric measure that, if approved, would have expanded and legitimized involuntary psychiatric detention and forced treatment across Europe. This could have had global repercussions had it not been stopped.   

This historic outcome followed years of sustained work by CCHR International, working closely with its European chapters, on a coordinated campaign to expose the dangers of the proposal. That campaign reached a critical point last year when it appeared that an amendment to increase coercive psychiatric practices would be approved. This was despite widespread opposition from United Nations human rights and anti-torture bodies, as well as disability and advocacy organizations.

CCHR International helped create reports explaining how forced psychiatric practices violate basic rights and cause long-term harm, which were shared with lawmakers and raised awareness of the proposed amendment. 
The Council of Europe rejection sends a powerful message: coercive psychiatric practices are incompatible with human rights; involuntary detention and forced treatment are not “necessary” or protective. As the rejection conveyed, coercion must not be normalized and can never be used to justify deprivation of liberty or bodily autonomy. The committee is now working on a plan to end coercive practices.   

A similar stand is urgently needed in the United States, where there are psychiatric efforts to expand coercive psychiatric policies. 

With your continued support, CCHR International can keep advancing our campaign to protect human rights and dignity in the mental health field, by abolishing coercive psychiatric practices. 

Donate to CCHR International

Donate to CCHR St. Louis

Thank you for helping CCHR remain the leading force defending human rights against the mental health industry.

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Massachusetts Fails to Advance Bill Banning Electric Shocking Device Used on Students

Posted on February 9, 2026 by cchrstl

The bill would have prohibited all procedures that cause physical pain or deprivations meant to force behavioral change – so-called “aversive therapy” – to persons with disabilities, which includes students at a school for autistic and disabled students. 

by  CCHR National Affairs Office

A Massachusetts bill that would have banned an electric shocking device used to control behavior at a residential school near Boston for autistic and disabled students failed to advance out of committee before a legislative deadline, effectively killing the bill in the current legislative session.  Similar bills have been introduced, but allowed to die in the state legislature for more than a decade.

Massachusetts House bill  245, sponsored by State Representative Danielle Gregoire, called for prohibiting any procedure that causes “obvious signs of physical pain” or denies “a humane existence” – so-called “aversive therapy” – to persons with disabilities in the state.

The bill would have effectively banned the electric shocking device used for behavioral conditioning at the Judge Rotenberg Center (JRC), the only school in the nation to employ such a device.  JRC staff use the device to deliver electric shocks remotely to electrodes attached to the students’ arms, legs, or other parts of their bodies to force changes in their behavior.

A horrifying  video  of the procedure shows a JRC student strapped to a restraint table while being shocked, screaming, “Stop! Stop!” and “That hurts!”  The 18-year-old was shocked 31 times over seven hours for failing to obey an order and was hospitalized for more than a month following the incident,  according  to a lawsuit brought by his mother against JRC.  The case was settled out of court.

The harm from the devices is detailed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which for a second time is proposing to ban the device.

“These devices present a number of psychological risks including depression, anxiety, worsening of underlying symptoms, development of post-traumatic stress disorder, and physical risks such as pain, burns, and tissue damage,” the FDA wrote in its proposed regulatory rule. 

The FDA previously banned the device, but JRC prevailed in a lawsuit that found the FDA did not have the proper legal authority to do so.  In 2023, Congress amended federal law to give the FDA that authority, and in 2024, the FDA again began the process that is expected to result in a final rule in May that bans the device as used by JRC.

In 2013, the U.N. Special Rapporteur investigated the use of electric shock and restraints on JRC students and  determined  their rights “have been violated under the UN Convention against Torture and other international standards.”

The Citizen’s Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) has actively advocated for years for an end to the practice, which it calls a human rights abuse.

Nancy R. Weiss, retired professor and co-founder of the National Leadership Consortium on Developmental Disabilities at the University of Delaware, points out that JRC students are electric shocked, but “you can’t use electric shock on prisoners, prisoners of war, or terrorists.”

Language to prohibit use of the device is currently part of a more comprehensive bill, Massachusetts Senate bill 1394, which was recently reported favorably by the Senate committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery and referred to the committee on Health Care Financing. 

If the bill is passed with the language banning the device remaining intact, or the FDA finalizes a rule prohibiting the device, the long and disgraceful history of harm from the device will finally come to an end.

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New Study Raises Major Concerns About Questionnaire Widely Used for Depression Screening

Posted on January 19, 2026 by cchrstl

A new study calls into question the validity of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ), a foremost depression screening tool, and cautions researchers and mental health providers about relying on PHQ results.

by  CCHR National Affairs Office

A new research report suggests that a widely used depression screening questionnaire should not be relied on for research purposes or in assessments for depression.

A team of academic researchers investigated the validity of the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ), whose various versions are among the most widely used tools in research and clinical settings worldwide for assessing depression in patients.  The researchers’ particular concern was whether responses to PHQ questions reflected how often potential symptoms of depression were experienced, or how much those symptoms bothered the individuals.  The PHQ instructions ask for how often the symptoms bother the person.

The study’s findings,  reported  in  JAMA Psychiatry, indicated that fewer than one in five responded to the PHQ according to the instructions (i.e., how much the symptoms bothered them).  Instead, their answers more often reflected the frequency, not severity of symptoms.  The scoring resulting from those responses likely indicated more severe depression than was actually the case.

“Results of this study suggest that the PHQ is widely misinterpreted, raising concerns about its validity for research and clinical decision-making,” the report  says.

Conditions the PHQ asks about – such as having “little interest or pleasure in doing things,” “feeling down,” “feeling tired or having little energy,” and “poor appetite or overeating” – may be felt by many people in the normal course of living.  

Questions about such conditions, along with the misinterpretation of the PHQ instructions, likely result in the overdiagnosis of depression, as well as the overprescribing of antidepressants and other psychiatric treatment.  It should be noted that the PHQ was developed in the mid-1990s with funding from Pfizer, an antidepressants manufacturer, which still holds the copyright for the questionnaire.

An  analysis  of data from the most recent National Health Interview Survey indicates a steady increase in antidepressant use from 2019 to 2023.  Overall, antidepressant use increased from one in 10 Americans (9.8%) in 2019 to one in nine (11.4%) in 2023.  The use of the PHQ by doctors to screen for depression during routine primary care, as now recommended by the U.S. Preventative Services Task Force (USPSTF), may well have contributed to that increase.

The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence in England and the United Kingdom National Screening Committee do not recommend routine screening of adults for depression.  Neither does The Canadian Task Force on Preventive Health Care, after  concluding  that research studies provide only “very low-certainty evidence” to support the practice.

In contrast, the USPSTF recommends the screening, based on what it claims is a “moderate certainty that screening for depression has a moderate net benefit.”  Even so, it advised health care providers to consider individual patient circumstances, such as an absence of any sign that the individual is depressed, before deciding whether to screen.  

Overly assessing depression can have a ripple effect, leading to inflated reports of a mental health crisis in the U.S. and fueling calls for increased funding for mental health programs.  

A recent Gallup  poll  asked respondents, “Has a doctor or nurse ever told you that you have depression?”  Since doctors and nurses may tell patients they have depression based on questionable results from the PHQ, those patients’ replies when polled only reflect what they’ve been told, but do not reliably represent an actual rate of depression.

Beyond adults, research has also indicated that screening teens for depression  does not  reduce suicidal behavior, undermining the primary rationale for screening them, but may lead to overdiagnosing and overtreatment with antidepressants.

Antidepressants carry known risks of dangerous side effects.  Psychiatrist Peter Breggin, M.D., describes antidepressants as neurotoxic, saying they harm and disrupt the functions of the brain and can cause abnormal thinking and behaviors that include anxiety, irritability, hostility, aggressiveness, loss of judgment, impulsivity, and mania, which can lead to violence and suicide.

The newly released documentary from the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, “Prescription for Violence: Psychiatry’s Deadly Side Effects,” is an exposé of the link between psychiatric drugs and violence, as well as the corruption and greed of the psychiatric industry fueling this crisis.  The documentary can be viewed online  here.

The content on this site is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for personal medical advice given by a physician or other competent healthcare provider.

Anyone wishing to discontinue or change the dose of an antidepressant or other psychiatric drug is cautioned to do so only under the supervision of a physician because of potentially dangerous withdrawal symptoms or other complications.

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HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF 0-5 YEAR OLDS DRUGGED UNDER MEDICAID

Posted on January 5, 2026 by cchrstl

This past year, CCHR International (CCHR Int) once again filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests to nearly all 50 states to ascertain how many underprivileged children and foster children were prescribed psychiatric drugs under Medicaid (state and federal funding for underprivileged children). 

From the 32 states that responded, the documents showed 2,999,084 0-17-year-olds were being prescribed these drugs at a total cost of $1.7 billion (including 270,196 aged 0-5). Aside from the documented and severe side effects of these psychiatric drugs, many of the drugs being prescribed are not even approved for young children, particularly the 0-5 age group. Yet nearly 300,000 0-5 year olds are being prescribed these drugs under Medicaid. 

Under Medicaid funding of this widespread drugging, parents and caregivers are not being provided with the documented FDA side effects of these drugs (provided in the FDA Medication Guides). 

CCHR Int began providing healthcare agencies and state policymakers with the data obtained from their respective states, along with the FDA-documented risks of these drugs. 105 legislators from the 32 states responded requesting more information to create policies to investigate and curb this over-drugging of underprivileged and foster children under Medicaid.

STATE LEGISLATION NOW ADDRESSING PSYCHOTROPIC DRUGGING OF CHILDREN 

Based on CCHR Int’s data packs, four states have now introduced legislation to combat the mass psychotropic drugging of Medicaid children. This will provide true informed consent for parents or legal guardians so they are fully aware of the risks of psychiatric drugs and enact penalties for practitioners who don’t comply. 

SOME PRESCRIBERS ARE DRUGGING MORE THAN 1000 CHILDREN PER YEAR  

CCHR Int staff filed additional FOIAs with each state to get the names of these prescribers that are drugging children under Medicaid along with the number of children they are prescribing drugs. Through these FOIA’s we have found top prescribers who are drugging outrageous numbers of children.

For example, in one state, we have uncovered providers who are drugging between 900 and 1,600 individual children in a single year—equivalent to roughly 20 to 32 children every week receiving addictive, Schedule II controlled substances (ADHD drugs).

Over six years of Medicaid prescriber data for one state obtained by CCHR Int showed that the top 20 prescribers of psychiatric drugs to children remained relatively unchanged, consistently drugging children at rates between 130 and 230 times higher than the average prescriber in the state. This suggests a systemic failure of controls on stimulant distribution and monitoring within Medicaid.

We have filed detailed complaints on these providers with the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration, state medical boards and the Office of Inspector General. And these prescribers are now being investigated.

CCHR International has been on the forefront of exposing the dangers of psychiatric drugs, especially on children, for decades and a growing number of medical professionals, legislators, opinion leaders and influencers are now speaking out about it and taking action.

?But there is much more to do, and we need your help. None of these investigations or FOIAs (which cost funds to obtain) could have happened without your support. 

Together, we can keep exposing these criminals who are wreaking havoc on society and putting lives at risk.

Donate to CCHR International

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Data Reveals Forced Electroshock in Connecticut More Than Doubled over the Past Decade

Posted on December 29, 2025 by cchrstl

Connecticut stands as an example of the growing problem of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) performed on patients without their consent, allowed under many states’ laws despite the procedure’s known risks of serious side effects and no proof of effectiveness.

by  CCHR National Affairs Office

Data obtained from the state of Connecticut reveals a more than doubling over the past decade in the number of requests from psychiatric facilities for court orders allowing the forced administration of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT, or “electroshock”) to patients who did not consent to it.  The procedure is performed by psychiatrists on patients experiencing depression or other mental health conditions despite the significant risk of permanent memory loss and other complications.

Statistics from the Connecticut Office of the Probate Court Administrator show the number of petitions for involuntary electroshock received by probate courts statewide grew from 81 in 2015 to 193 in 2024, with a record high 199 in 2022.  This year is on track to exceed that record, with 174 petitions filed through August.  The figures were obtained through an information request by Jim Flannery, a former biomedical equipment technician, and are posted on his  website.

These numbers represent individuals forced against their will to undergo a psychiatric procedure in which up to 460 volts of electricity is shot through their brains to cause convulsions.  Psychiatrists still cannot explain how electroconvulsive therapy (ECT, or “electroshock”) is supposed to work to alleviate depression or other mental health conditions, how much voltage it will take, or how many sessions of the procedure to administer.  It is a matter of trial and error with human lives.

ECT is known to cause cognitive impairment, permanent memory loss, prolonged or persistent seizures, worsening psychiatric symptoms, heart attacks and other cardiovascular complications, and death.  A 2023  study  concluded that patients who had received ECT were at a 44 times greater risk of suicide than patients who were not electroshocked.

Whether electroshock is even effective has never been proven.  A 2019 comprehensive  analysis  of studies on ECT found that the quality of the prior research was so poor that nothing could be concluded about any effectiveness of the procedure. 

This year, the largest-ever international  survey  of people who had received electroshock found that most recipients reported little or no benefit from their ECT treatment and, in many cases, reported it made their lives worse.  A large majority reported memory loss, with most of them saying it had lasted at least three years.  According to the researchers conducting the survey, “memory loss three years later is probably permanent.”

Psychiatrists performing electroshock can greatly increase their income.  It has been estimated that a psychiatrist spending just a few hours a week to do 20 ECT procedures can bring in an additional $300,000 per year.

International mental health standards now oppose all coercive mental health practices, including forced electroshock.  In 2023, the World Health Organization and the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights  advised  that “international human rights standards clarify that ECT without consent violates the right to physical and mental integrity and may constitute torture and ill-treatment.”  The organizations called for an outright ban on ECT for children.

The Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) continues to call for legislation to ban all electroshock.  CCHR’s documentary, Therapy or Torture: The Truth About Electroshock, which can be viewed online, warns consumers about the serious risks of ECT.  To date, more than 140,000 people have signed CCHR’s petition to ban electroshock.

The content on this site is for informational purposes only and is not intended to substitute for personal medical advice given by a physician or other healthcare provider.

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NEW CCHR DOCUMENTARY EXPOSES DEADLY LINK BETWEEN PSYCHIATRIC DRUGS AND VIOLENCE

Posted on December 15, 2025 by cchrstl

CCHR has released its new documentary, Prescription for Violence: Psychiatry’s Deadly Side Effects, which highlights extensive evidence correlating the escalation of mass shootings, suicides, and violent crime with the pervasive use of psychiatric drugs. 

Prescription for Violence presents harrowing interviews with victims and families, alongside compelling commentary from investigators, attorneys, psychologists and psychiatrists who have linked psychiatric drugs to some of the nation’s most horrific tragedies.

In a society where one in four Americans is currently taking psychiatric drugs—many without fully understanding the potentially lethal side effects—this groundbreaking documentary uncovers a crisis of national and global proportions. Among the side effects listed by drug manufacturers are mania, hostility, aggression, homicidal ideation and suicide attempts. 

For many years the documented correlation between psychiatric drug use and violent behavior has been largely ignored.

For decades CCHR has been at the forefront of exposing the link between psychiatric drugs and violence, which is finally being recognized as a global issue requiring a full investigation. 

Watch the full documentary by clicking this link, Prescription for Violence: Psychiatry’s Deadly Side Effects.

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