title: Broadened use of atypical antipsychotics: safety, effectiveness, and policy challenges.
abstract: Atypical antipsychotic medications are increasingly used for a wide range of clinical indications in diverse populations, including privately and publicly insured youth and elderly nursing home residents. These trends heighten policy challenges for payers, patients, and clinicians related to appropriate prescribing and management, patient safety, and clinical effectiveness. For clinicians and patients, balancing risks and benefits is challenging, given the paucity of effective alternative treatments. For health care systems, regulators, and policymakers, challenges include developing the evidence base on comparative risks and benefits; defining measures of treatment quality; and implementing policies that encourage evidence-based practices while avoiding unduly burdensome restrictions.
authors.affiliation: Center for Health Services Research on Pharmacotherapy, Chronic Disease Management, and Outcomes (CHSR-PCDMO), Institute for Health, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA. scrystal@rci.rutgers.edu
authors.forename: Stephen
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Crystal
authors.forename: Mark
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Olfson
authors.forename: Cecilia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Harold
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pincus
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Gerhard
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000368:Aged; D014150:Antipsychotic Agents / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000191:economics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D002648:Child; D004363:Drug Utilization / Q000639:trends; D006291:Health Policy; D006801:Humans; D007348:Insurance, Health; D009735:Nursing Homes; D056687:Off-Label Use / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D017149:Private Sector; D014481:United States
chemical_list: D014150:Antipsychotic Agents