Cerebral Says It Will Stop Prescribing Most Controlled Substances
By Rolfe Winkler
Cerebral Inc., criticized for what some viewed as overprescribing of stimulants for patients with ADHD, now plans to back away almost entirely from controlled substances. According to the online clinic's co-founder and CEO, Kyle Robertson, Cerebral saw a need in 2020 to start prescribing controlled substances in response to patients' difficulty getting care and medications in person. He attributed the decision to stop prescribing them to "the evolving landscape around the accessibility of mental-health care, and the ability for patients to return to an in-person or hybrid care model for this treatment." Existing patients will be tapered off their prescriptions of stimulants, benzodiazepines, and certain sleep aids and referred from Cerebral to an in-person clinician. Robertson did say the company will continue to use controlled substances to treat opioid-use disorder, because the need is too great to discontinue that practice.
Read more on the Wall Street Journal.