Ending the Evidentiary & Insurance Reimbursement Bias Against Neurofeedback to Treat ADHD: It Will Take Clinician Action in Addition to the Compelling Science

Abstract

Attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the most frequently diagnosed pediatric behavioral health disorder with 11% of American school-aged children (and nearly 20% of high school boys) having been medically diagnosed with ADHD according to the latest report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Schwarz & Cohen, 2013), a significant increase from the 8% in prior reports (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2010). Stimulant medication and behavior therapy are the two most widely accepted treatments for ADHD, and these treatments are commonly reimbursed by healthcare insurers. Although both are considered to meet the highest standards for the ‘‘evidence-based treatment’’ of ADHD, and been recognized as such by the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) and CHADD, the leading ADHD advocacy group, the actual evidence is that these treatments fail to result in sustained benefit for the vast majority of children who receive them as demonstrated in the NIMH-funded MTA Cooperative study, the gold standard study in ADHD treatment effectiveness research.