CSAP has released the following statement calling for more qualified leadership at the federal level on health and behavioral health issues:

The California State Association of Psychiatrists, representing approximately 3,000 psychiatrists in the state, calls on the California congressional delegation and the Senate Mental Health Caucus led by United States Senator Alex Padilla to seek, for leadership of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), a qualified health leader with the training, experience, and integrity required to safeguard the health and well-being of all Americans.

The current HHS leadership has repeatedly spread falsehoods about medical preventative services and treatments, including those important for individuals with psychiatric illness. Inaccurate healthcare information increases stigma, spreads fear and can keep people from reaching out for help when they need it most. Inaccurate healthcare information can also restrict access to critical services that ease suffering, restore functioning, and prevent suicide. Without these critical services, criminalization and expanded use of civil commitment will curtail the ability of individuals with mental illness to lead productive lives.

A disregard for science threatens not only the integrity of our health system but also the lives and civil rights of millions of Americans who rely on effective, evidence-based treatment for psychiatric and other illnesses.

The United States needs Health and Human Services leadership that protects public health, relies on accurate data, upholds the principles of evidence-based medicine, and promotes care over fear. For these reasons, the California State Association of Psychiatrists joins the American College of Physicians, the American Academy of Family Physicians, and numerous other medical experts in calling for swift action.