Nursing homes falsely label patients schizophrenic to sedate them, OIG says

 https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2026/03/19/nursing-homes-dementia-abuse-antipsychotic-drugs/

Watchdog agency said facilities intentionally misdiagnose residents with dementia to hide inappropriate use of antipsychotic drugs.

Many U.S. nursing homes are creating phony schizophrenia diagnoses to hide their use of dangerous antipsychotic drugs to subdue dementia patients, a government watchdog report said Thursday in its sharpest finding yet over a persistent form of alleged abuse.

Most of the drugs are not approved for patients with Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia because they increase risk of falls, strokes and death. But doctors can prescribe them “off-label,” and caregivers and families regularly resort to them if a patient is violent and poses a threat to themselves and others. Resident advocates have long warned they are overused.