A Welcome Action: Removal of the REMS Requirement for Clozapine

John Kane, MD, believes the removal of the risk evaluation and mitigation strategies (REMS) program for clozapine will help increase utilization, provide easier access for some patients and families, and sustain engagement.

"This is still the only medication that has FDA approval for the treatment of those patients who failed to respond to first-line drugs. Unfortunately, it is grossly underutilized in the United States and many other countries around the world," said Kane.

You can read more about this news here, or watch another exclusive interview on the topic with our Mood Disorders Section Editor, Gus Alva, MD, here.

Dr Kane is a professor of Psychiatry and Molecular Medicine at the Donald and Barbara Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell and the codirector of the Institute for Behavioral Science at the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research.