Medco Says More Than 20 Percent of Adults Use Mental Health Agents

Franklin Lakes, NJ — The pharmacy benefit manager Medco just released results from a report indicating that more than 20 percent of Americans take at least one drug to treat behavioral conditions such as anxiety and depression. Further findings say that one in four women uses medications to treat mental illness, according to an Associated Press story.
Use of these agents has risen 22 percent from 2001. The medications are most often prescribed to women age 45 and older, but their use by men and young adults climbed sharply. In adults 20 to 44, use of antipsychotic drugs and treatments for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder more than tripled, and use of antianxiety drugs like Xanax, Valium, and Ativan rose 30 percent from a decade ago.