Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert Kennedy Jr. has initiated a new National Institutes of Health (NIH) study to investigate whether psychiatric medications, including SSRIs, may play a role in violent behavior.
The announcement follows the recent school shooting at Annunciation Catholic School in Minneapolis, in which 23-year-old Robert “Robin” Westman killed two children and injured several others before taking his own life.
In a Fox News interview, Kennedy explained the purpose of the study.
“At NIH, we’re launching studies on the potential contribution of some of the SSRI drugs and some of the other psychiatric drugs that might be contributing to violence,” he said, noting that many psychiatric medications carry black box warnings highlighting possible suicidal or homicidal thoughts.
Kennedy has previously drawn connections between antidepressants and mass shootings.
During his confirmation hearings, Kennedy emphasized that while firearms have long been accessible, the introduction of psychiatric medications coincided with a rise in school attacks.
He suggested that other potential factors, such as social media, should also be examined alongside antidepressants.
This NIH study aligns with the Make America Healthy Again (MAHA) commission, established under President Donald Trump, which investigates the prevalence and risks of SSRIs, antipsychotics and mood