Tuesday, May 17, 2005

New Drug Limits May Put Mentally Ill In Danger (Florida) TBO News story - "Mental health professionals are warning that the state's decision to change the process for prescribing powerful medications for their patients could endanger those patients' health and possibly the safety of others. The warning comes after the advocates lost a battle last week to maintain open access for mental health drugs under Florida's Medicaid program. The Legislature mandated that the drugs be included in a program aimed at saving nearly $300 million in the $2.5 billion drug program in the coming fiscal year. The psychotropic drugs are used to treat thousands of Medicaid-eligible patients with mental illness. The drugs often are very expensive, as in the case of Zyprexa and Seroquel, both used to treat bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. For years, they have been exempted from limits to prescription drugs. "