Goldwater Rule hasn't been overturned. Psychiatrists are still prohibited from commenting on mental state of Trump

Goldwater Rule hasn't been overturned. Psychiatrists are still prohibited from commenting on mental state of Trump

Shortly after Barry Goldwater was named the Republican presidential nominee in 1964, Fact magazine published an article headlined, "1,189 Psychiatrists say Goldwater is Psychologically Unfit to be President!" 

Goldwater sued the magazine for libel, and in 1973 the American Psychiatric Assn. implemented an ethics rule that prohibits psychiatrists from publicly commenting on the mental state of public figures they have not examined in person and from whom they have not obtained consent to discuss.

The so-called Goldwater Rule has gained renewed attentio n in the age of President Trump, as his speeches and tweets have prompted some psychiatrists to argue that they have a responsibility to the public to speak up about his mental state. Confusion over the rule grew Tuesday after an article on health site Stat News reported that the American Psychoanalytic Assn. â€" not to be confused with the much larger American Psychiatric Assn. â€" told its members that the long-standing rule should not restrict them from publicly commenting on Trump or any other public figure.

"The American Psychiatric Association's ethical stance on the Goldwater Rule applies to its members only. APsaA does not consider political commentary by its individual members an ethical matter. APsaA's ethical code concerns clinical practice, not public commentary," the group said in an email to its 3,500 members.

Soon after, the grou p tweeted that the original article was misleading.

In a statement to NPR, the group's director of public affairs, Wylie Tene, said members "have always been free to comment on public figures, but have been cautioned against diagnosing."

The American Psychiatric Assn. also tweeted, clarifying that its policy has never changed and that the Goldwater Rule remains in effect for its 37,000 members.

Much of the confusion seems to have stemmed from people wrongly using "psychiatry" and "psychoanalysis" interchangeably.

According to the American Psychiatric Assn., psychiatry "is the branch of medicine focused on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of mental, emotional and behavioral disorders."

The American Psychoanalytic Assn. describes psychoanalysis as a method that "teaches us about the unconscious psychological forces within us outside of everyday awareness," pulling from people's "stories, fantasies and dreams."

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