Bipartisan Bill Would Require Written Consent for VA Psychiatric Drug Prescriptions

Approximately 35 national veterans organizations sent a letter last month to leaders of the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees urging them to prioritize the Written Informed Consent Act. The American Legion, Disabled American Veterans, Veterans of Foreign Wars and Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America were among the signatories.

“The legislation will ensure veterans are fully informed about a drug’s risks, leaving no doubt about what information veterans are or are not provided,” the groups wrote in the letter.

Nearly 70 percent of veterans receiving VA care are prescribed psychiatric medications, according to the Grunt Style Foundation. The Written Informed Consent Act would require VA providers to follow the same informed-consent protocols for psychiatric medications that are already used when prescribing opioid painkillers.

It would mandate that the VA provide veterans with clear and comprehensive written information before prescribing medications used to treat mood disorders.

The bill covers antidepressants, anti-anxiety medications and other psychiatric drugs. It requires disclosures about potential risks such as suicidal thoughts and behaviors. The legislation specifically names antipsychotics, stimulants, antidepressants, anxiolytics (anti-anxiety drugs) and narcotics as drugs that would require a veteran’s written consent.

Under the proposal, VA health care providers would be required to use a standardized written consent form outlining potential adverse effects. Veterans or their caregivers would also receive a written summary detailing risks, benefits and alternative treatment options. Currently these prescriptions may be accompanied only by verbal disclosures or limited written information.

Republican Representative Gus Bilirakis of Florida is helping lead the legislation in the House. “Our veterans deserve nothing less than complete transparency when it comes to their health and the medications they’re prescribed,” Bilirakis said at a news conference organized by veterans groups outside the Capitol in April. The House version of the bill has 19 co-sponsors.

Democratic Representative Don Davis of North Carolina, an Air Force veteran, is a co-sponsor of the House bill. Republican Representative Tom Barrett of Michigan, an Army veteran, is a co-sponsor of the House bill. The bill now awaits action in both the House and Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committees.

Newsweek reported that with the renewed push from the coalition of veterans’ groups, the legislation could be closer to passage after previous attempts stalled. Charles Garbarino, a retired Army colonel, told Stars and Stripes that if the veteran says ‘I don’t want it,’ their refusal would need to go into their chart.

He added that leaving a serious mental health problem untreated can lead to suicide.