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By Chris Christoff
The Detroit Free Press LANSING, Mass. — Michigan's prison system is jeopardizing the mental health of some 1,500 inmates by switching their psychotropic medication from name brands to generic forms to save money, a coalition of mental health advocates charged today. The Michigan Partners in Crisis said switching inmates from medications that work to equivalent generic drugs can often cause relapses for people diagnosed with schizophrenia, bi-polar disorder and other mental health illnesses. The coalition includes physicians, judges and law enforcement officials. The group said substituting generics for brands, such as generic Risperdal for brand Seroquel, is risky because the two drugs are not identical, and patients respond differently.  Full Story: Switch to cheaper meds could jeopardize mental health of inmates, critics say |
