APA Member Patrice Harris, M.D., Takes Office as President of AMA

Patrice Harris, M.D., M.A., a Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association (APA), was sworn in today as President of the American Medical Association (AMA), the nation’s largest medical society with roughly 250,000 members.  

APA Endorses Federal Parity Bill; Urges Congress to Quickly Pass Legislation

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) is endorsing “The Mental Health Parity Compliance Act,” a new bipartisan bill introduced today that would enhance the transparency and accountability of insurers’ coverage of mental health and substance use benefits, in compliance with the federal parity law.

Dr. Bruce Schwartz Takes Office as APA President

Bruce J. Schwartz, M.D., began his one-year term as President of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) at the conclusion of the APA Annual Meeting in San Francisco on May 22. At the same time Jeffrey Geller, M.D., M.P.H., began his term as APA President-elect.

Paul O'Leary, M.D., Assumes Post as APA Assembly Speaker

At the close of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) Annual Meeting on May 22 in San Francisco, Paul J. O'Leary, M.D., assumed the role of Speaker of the APA Assembly of District Branches.

Joint Statement Supporting the VACCINES Act

Our organizations, which represent a combined membership of more than 560,000 physician and medical student members, are united in our support of the bipartisan Vaccine Awareness Campaign to Champion Immunization Nationally and Enhance Safety (VACCINES) Act, introduced yesterday by physicians Rep. Kim Schrier (D-Wash.) and Rep. Michael Burgess (R-Texas), along with Reps. Eliot Engel (D-N.Y.), Brett Guthrie (R-Ky.), Kurt Schrader (D-Conn.), and Gus Bilirakis (R-Fla.).

Americans are Concerned about Potential Negative Impacts of Social Media on Mental Health and Well-being

• 2019 Annual Meeting

Americans generally feel social media has a more negative than positive influence on mental and emotional well-being, according to new poll released here today by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

Americans' Overall Level of Anxiety about Health, Safety and Finances Remain High

• 2019 Annual Meeting

For the second year in a row, about two in three Americans say they are extremely or somewhat anxious about keeping themselves and their family safe, paying bills and their health, according to a new poll released here today by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

About Half of Workers Are Concerned about Discussing Mental Health Issues in the Workplace; A Third Worry about Consequences if They Seek Help

• 2019 Annual Meeting

Roughly half of American workers say they are comfortable talking about their mental health in the workplace and more than one-third are worried about job consequences if they seek mental health care, according to a new poll released here today by the American Psychiatric Association (APA).

Study Supports Effectiveness of New Fast-Acting Antidepressant, Esketamine Nasal Spray

New research supports the effectiveness and safety of esketamine nasal spray in treating depression in people who have not responded to previous treatment. The research will be published online today in the American Journal of Psychiatry. This study is one of the key studies that led to the recent Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of esketamine nasal spray, in conjunction with an oral antidepressant, for use in people with treatment-resistant depression.

Mental Health Impacts of Increasingly Severe Storms: Lessons from the 2017 Atlantic Storm Season

The 2017 Atlantic storm season provides important lessons on the need to anticipate and prepare for the mental health impacts of increasingly severe weather events, according to new research presented here at the American Psychiatric Association’s 2019 Annual Meeting.

Strained Relationships, Past Trauma and Family Responsibilities Contribute to Loneliness among Midlife Women

Urban minority midlife women commonly experience significant loneliness due to strained family and romantic relationships, responsibilities as a caregiver, past trauma and social isolation, according to new research being presented today at the American Psychiatric Association’s Annual Meeting here. Supportive relationships were identified as protective against feelings of loneliness.

New Research: The Long-term Physical-Psychiatric Effects of Childhood Trauma

Exposure to trauma in childhood is associated with both psychiatric and physical problems for decades afterward, according to new research presented here today at the American Psychiatric Association’s (APA) Annual Meeting. Researchers are longitudinally assessing more than 1,000 individuals who were directly exposed to the 9/11 terror attack as children, as well as a matched control group of 500 individuals who were not.