Antipsychotic Drug Use in Nursing Homes: Trend Update

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is tracking the progress of the National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care in Nursing Homes by reviewing publicly reported measures. The official measure of the Partnership is the percentage of long-stay nursing home residents who are receiving an antipsychotic medication, excluding those residents diagnosed with schizophrenia, Huntington's disease or Tourette’s syndrome. In the fourth quarter of 2011, 23.9% of long-stay nursing home residents were receiving an antipsychotic medication; since then there has been a decrease of 24.8% to a national prevalence of 18.0% in the second quarter of 2015. Success varies by state and CMS region, with some states and regions seeing a reduction greater than 20%.

For More Information:

• Visit the National Partnership web page
• Send correspondence to dnh_behavioralhealth@cms.hhs.gov