Number of People Taking Psychiatric Drugs in the United States

The following information is extracted from the most accurate data available on the number of people taking psychiatric drugs in the United States. This information comes from IQVia (formerly IMS Health), the largest vendor of U.S. physician prescribing data. The data below was taken from the IQVia Total Patient Tracker Database for 2020, extracted January 2021.

To find out about the hundreds of drug regulatory agency warnings and documented side effects for any class of psychiatric drug listed on this page (i.e., ADHD Drugs, Antidepressants, Antipsychotics, etc.) click the hyperlinks listed below:

All Psychiatric Drugs

All Ages — 76,940,157

          Age Breakdown:
          0-1 Years — 85,003
          2-3 Years — 138,822
          4-5 Years — 215,120
          6-12 Years — 2,652,554
          13-17 Years — 3,188,966
          18-24 Years — 5,535,171
          25-44 Years — 20,455,212
          45-64 Years — 25,202,893
          65 Years + — 19,114,040

Antidepressants

All Ages — 45,204,771

          Age Breakdown:
          0-1 Years — 7,811
          2-3 Years — 12,137
          4-5 Years — 18,911
          6-12 Years — 543,120
          13-17 Years — 1,605,375
          18-24 Years — 3,547,307
          25-44 Years — 12,839,606
          45-64 Years — 15,611,175
          65 Years + — 10,740,584

ADHD Drugs

All Ages — 9,585,203

          Age Breakdown:
          0-1 Years — 310
          2-3 Years — 1,300
          4-5 Years — 57,010
          6-12 Years — 1,750,481
          13-17 Years — 1,409,438
          18-24 Years — 1,166,119
          25-44 Years — 3,242,762
          45-64 Years — 1,600,104
          65 Years + — 340,118

Anti-anxiety Drugs

All Ages — 31,229,150

          Age Breakdown:
          0-1 Years — 60,068
          2-3 Years — 89,453
          4-5 Years — 90,716
          6-12 Years — 357,976
          13-17 Years — 571,210
          18-24 Years — 1,591,219
          25-44 Years — 8,308,952
          45-64 Years — 11,340,444
          65 Years + — 8,487,756

Antipsychotics

All Ages — 11,154,803

          Age Breakdown:
          0-1 Years — 1,318
          2-3 Years — 7,873
          4-5 Years — 22,180
          6-12 Years — 304,754
          13-17 Years — 502,372
          18-24 Years — 1,057,823
          25-44 Years — 3,414,984
          45-64 Years — 3,563,164
          65 Years + — 2,170,963

Mood Stabilizers

All Ages — 21,863,616

          Age Breakdown:
          0-1 Years — 21,593
          2-3 Years — 36,986
          4-5 Years — 50,206
          6-12 Years — 289,262
          13-17 Years — 419,221
          18-24 Years — 946,376
          25-44 Years — 4,859,812
          45-64 Years — 8,387,108
          65 Years + — 6,700,511

SOURCE: IQVia Total Patient Tracker (TPT) Database, Year 2020, Extracted January 2021.