Psychiatry Turns to Drug Therapy

Talk therapy, which may be as good as or better than drugs in the treatment of depression, has been dropped as a service rendered by some psychiatrists due to lower insurance company reimbursement rates and policies that discourage the practice. In its place, the psychiatrists are relegated to adjusting medications, ordering tests, and referring their patients to psychologists or therapists for traditional talk therapy and counseling. The NYT reports that many psychiatrists are unhappy with the change, but have been co-opted by the economics of managed care; "A psychiatrist can earn $150 for three 15-minute medication visits compared with $90 for a 45-minute talk therapy session."

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