Watchdog Warns Psychiatry May Undermine Antidepressant Deprescribing Plan

In a bold move that could reshape mental health treatment, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services unveiled a plan in May 2026 to address overprescribing and support safe deprescribing and tapering of antidepressants. However, the mental health watchdog Citizens Commission on Human Rights International (CCHR) warns that organized psychiatry's history of downplaying drug risks and opposing full disclosure may weaken these safeguards. CCHR, founded by the Church of Scientology and Professor Thomas Szasz, has long campaigned for patient safety, including securing FDA black-box warnings on antidepressants linked to suicide. The watchdog points to a 2026 survey where 94% of psychiatrists disagreed that HHS reforms would help, suggesting an effort to protect prescribing practices. CCHR cites a psychiatric leader who opposed the 2004 FDA black-box warning on SSRIs and suicide risk in children, despite at least 100 families losing loved ones to suicide while on these drugs. The organization also highlights the debunked serotonin theory of depression, which psychiatrists used to justify prescribing, and the minimization of withdrawal risks, often misdiagnosed as relapse. CCHR President Jan Eastgate insists that psychiatry's track record lacks credibility in supporting deprescribing, urging federal officials to implement stronger informed consent protections.

The HHS plan aligns with international concerns, such as the 2024 UK All-Party Parliamentary Group report calling for deprescribing antidepressants and withdrawal support services. Yet, some U.S. psychiatrists cite workforce shortages and limited beds instead of addressing overprescribing, despite mental health spending skyrocketing 241% from $40.9 billion in 2000 to $139.6 billion in 2021, with worsening outcomes. CCHR notes that a psychiatric committee formed in 2025 to counter deprescribing initiatives conducted a selective survey at a major annual meeting, with 94% of 229 respondents disagreeing that HHS reforms would help. The watchdog also reveals that a key figure in that committee, who once headed a Maryland psychiatric hospital, opposed the 2004 FDA black-box warning on antidepressants and suicide risk in children. In 2002, the same hospital conducted clinical drug trials for multiple pharmaceutical companies, including for treatment-resistant depression, and the leader publicly expressed excitement about new psychiatric drugs, citing the hospital's large patient volume as valuable to pharmaceutical clients. A high-profile mass shooter treated at that hospital was prescribed antidepressants linked to violent and suicidal behavior.

CCHR's decades-long campaign against psychiatric abuses includes prompting an FDA public hearing into antidepressants linked to suicide and violence in 1991, where patient testimony was ignored by a psychiatrist panel. In 2004, CCHR assisted families testifying before another FDA hearing, contributing to the black-box suicide warning issued that October. The chief communications officer of the main psychiatric body acknowledged CCHR as an opponent due to its well-publicized campaign, noting the body coordinated with pharmaceutical-funded patient advocacy groups to promote antidepressants. With global antidepressant sales reaching $15.6 billion, and the fastest-growing segment being preschoolers aged 0-5 years between 1998 and 2002, the stakes are high. CCHR urges full implementation of the HHS plan with strong safeguards for informed consent and deprescribing support, as the organization has helped enact over 190 mental health reforms worldwide.