U.S. health department officials last week explored whether they could ban certain drugs in a widely prescribed class of antidepressants as Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. prepared to roll out a plan to reduce their use, according to sources familiar with the discussions. Their interest centered on specific treatments within the class known as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors, or SSRIs, such as Zoloft, Prozac, and Lexapro, which have been available in the U.S. for decades. The sources did not specify which drugs were being examined for restrictions or how far inquiries had advanced.
Official Response and SSRI Announcement
Kennedy’s Health and Human Services Department stated it “has not had any discussions about banning SSRIs, and any claims suggesting otherwise are false.” Kennedy on Monday announced initiatives intended to reduce SSRI use while attempting to reassure Americans who still want to take them. The initiatives include reimbursement guidelines for physicians helping patients come off medications, plans to share data on prescribing trends, and investment in training for healthcare providers. Kennedy stated, “Psychiatric medications have a role in care, but we will no longer treat them as the default. Let me be clear: If you are taking psychiatric medication, we are not telling you to stop.”
Medical and Regulatory Context
About one in six U.S. adults reported currently taking SSRI medications according to a 2026 study in the medical journal BMJ Mental Health. The American Psychiatric Association considers SSRIs a first option, evidence-based treatment for depression. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has authority over their use, and any new restrictions would require strong scientific evidence of a risk to patients that outweighs their benefits. Reviewing new evidence could take months or years.
Broader Controversy
Kennedy and supporters within his “Make America Healthy Again” movement oppose widespread use of SSRI antidepressants, arguing they have been overprescribed, especially to children, and are extraordinarily difficult to quit with withdrawal symptoms. Kennedy has also, without evidence, linked SSRIs to violence, including mass shootings. The psychiatric association in a statement after Kennedy’s Monday announcement said it supports plans for better research but strongly objected “to framing the nation’s mental health crisis as primarily a problem of ‘overmedicalization’ or ‘overprescribing.’”
This article is an AI-assisted summary. All facts and figures are drawn from the original report: https://www.staradvertiser.com/2026/05/08/breaking-news/kennedys-officials-explored-restrictions-on-antidepressants/