Benzodiazepine Prescribing in Mississippi
Medicare Part D, 2013–2024.
Benzodiazepine prescribing in Mississippi fell 38.9% between 2013 and 2024 — a steeper fall than the country as a whole. In 2024 the state recorded 276,786 Medicare Part D benzodiazepine claims across 55,795 patients, an average of 4.96 fills per patient per year, which ranks 14 of 51 states. Alprazolam accounts for 37.5% of it.
Mississippi over twelve years
Which benzodiazepines Mississippi prescribes
| Drug | Claims 2024 | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Alprazolam | 103,927 | 37.5% |
| Clonazepam | 78,137 | 28.2% |
| Lorazepam | 46,917 | 17% |
| Diazepam | 23,706 | 8.6% |
| Temazepam | 20,184 | 7.3% |
Psychiatric prescribers in Mississippi
106 psychiatric prescribers in Mississippi appear in the 2024 Medicare Part D data with benzodiazepine claims. 15 of them recorded at least a 50% fall in benzodiazepine claims since 2019. Sorted by change, largest reduction first.
This is a record, not a recommendation. A fall in Medicare benzodiazepine claims has many possible explanations — a changing patient panel, retirement, a shift to another payer, or simply dropping below the threshold CMS publishes. It does not establish that a prescriber supports tapering, and a low number does not mean they will take you as a patient. Use it as one input, then ask the five vetting questions.
| Prescriber | City | 2019 | 2024 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian MaherPsychiatry & Neurology | Gulfport | 135 | 12 | -91.1% |
| Candace ThompsonPsychiatry | Southaven | 1,103 | 103 | -90.7% |
| Mary LarkinPsychiatry | Meridian | 294 | 33 | -88.8% |
| Aracelis Lu BreaPsychiatry | Tupelo | 224 | 34 | -84.8% |
| John RichardsonPsychiatry | Brookhaven | 219 | 53 | -75.8% |
| Krishan GuptaPsychiatry | Jackson | 579 | 157 | -72.9% |
| Akif KhawajaPsychiatry | Jackson | 381 | 107 | -71.9% |
| Marshall BelagaPsychiatry | Jackson | 41 | 13 | -68.3% |
| Khaled Abu-HamdanPsychiatry | Whitfield | 737 | 246 | -66.6% |
| Ross CollinsPsychiatry | Tupelo | 76 | 26 | -65.8% |
| Khari OmolaraPsychiatry | Natchez | 2,052 | 779 | -62% |
| Saleem AliPsychiatry | Columbus | 79 | 30 | -62% |
| Virginia PaynePsychiatry | Jackson | 39 | 16 | -59% |
| Scott BaymillerPsychiatry | Batesville | 255 | 111 | -56.5% |
| Maxie GordonPsychiatry | Clinton | 380 | 173 | -54.5% |
| Jeffrey McgilbraPsychiatry | Meridian | 366 | 190 | -48.1% |
| Elizabeth PerryPsychiatry & Neurology | Ridgeland | 81 | 42 | -48.1% |
| Clyde SheehanPsychiatry & Neurology | Tupelo | 704 | 366 | -48% |
| Mark LadnerPsychiatry | Jackson | 160 | 95 | -40.6% |
| George DavisPsychiatry | Gautier | 1,099 | 659 | -40% |
| Beverly BryantPsychiatry | Jackson | 50 | 30 | -40% |
| Parveen KumarPsychiatry | Ridgeland | 691 | 436 | -36.9% |
| Charles LippincottPsychiatry | Tupelo | 335 | 215 | -35.8% |
| Jennifer TrihoulisPsychiatry | Columbia | 302 | 197 | -34.8% |
| Raymond OverstreetPsychiatry | Columbus | 1,201 | 792 | -34.1% |
| Mark ResterPsychiatry | Flowood | 90 | 60 | -33.3% |
| John BlackPsychiatry & Neurology | University | 92 | 62 | -32.6% |
| Kristen BevillPsychiatry | Whitfield | 230 | 163 | -29.1% |
| Mark WebbPsychiatry | Ridgeland | 343 | 244 | -28.9% |
| Marshall VancePsychiatry | Corinth | 418 | 313 | -25.1% |
| Fawaz AbdrabboPsychiatry | Ridgeland | 66 | 50 | -24.2% |
| Margaret CassadaPsychiatry | Greenville | 452 | 345 | -23.7% |
| Eric WarrenPsychiatry | Brandon | 2,710 | 2,096 | -22.7% |
| William CookNeuropsychiatry | Jackson | 235 | 187 | -20.4% |
| Stephen JamesPsychiatry | Gulfport | 138 | 110 | -20.3% |
| Amandeep SinghPsychiatry | Jackson | 389 | 314 | -19.3% |
| Angelos VamvakasPsychiatry | Diberville | 89 | 72 | -19.1% |
| Chika IwuekePsychiatry | Tupelo | 417 | 338 | -18.9% |
| Andrew BishopPsychiatry | Jackson | 1,641 | 1,337 | -18.5% |
| John MontgomeryPsychiatry | Pascagoula | 17 | 14 | -17.6% |
| Patricia DudleyPsychiatry | Meridian | 256 | 213 | -16.8% |
| Michael SteptPsychiatry | Jackson | 92 | 79 | -14.1% |
| Demetrio Prota MartinezPsychiatry | Tupelo | 528 | 459 | -13.1% |
| Clyde GlennPsychiatry | Ridgeland | 1,236 | 1,100 | -11% |
| Roger RidgewayPsychiatry | Pascagoula | 594 | 539 | -9.3% |
| Muhaiminur RahmanPsychiatry | Jackson | 34 | 31 | -8.8% |
| Terry JordanPsychiatry | Meridian | 266 | 247 | -7.1% |
| Venkatasubramanian BaskararajanPsychiatry | Hattiesburg | 545 | 516 | -5.3% |
| Grace KellyPsychiatry & Neurology | Meridian | 39 | 37 | -5.1% |
| Justin JonesPsychiatry | Jackson | 12 | 12 | 0% |
| Richard PannelNeuropsychiatry | Oxford | 182 | 187 | +2.7% |
| Amy MillerPsychiatry & Neurology | Saltillo | 291 | 305 | +4.8% |
| Kurt BuechlerPsychiatry & Neurology | Ridgeland | 178 | 190 | +6.7% |
| Anthony JacksonPsychiatry | Oxford | 62 | 67 | +8.1% |
| Joseph KwentusNeuropsychiatry | Jackson | 146 | 161 | +10.3% |
| Carolyn TinglePsychiatry | Whitfield | 514 | 570 | +10.9% |
| Jule MillerPsychiatry | Biloxi | 13 | 15 | +15.4% |
| Alfredo RodriguezPsychiatry | Starkville | 386 | 460 | +19.2% |
| Roopsi BassiPsychiatry | Hattiesburg | 190 | 228 | +20% |
| Mark MclainPsychiatry | Ridgeland | 340 | 427 | +25.6% |
| Roy ReevesPsychiatry | Jackson | 11 | 14 | +27.3% |
| Kevin PasserPsychiatry | Hattiesburg | 14 | 18 | +28.6% |
| Susan YoungerPsychiatry & Neurology | Ridgeland | 272 | 377 | +38.6% |
| Sagar PatelPsychiatry | Jackson | 16 | 23 | +43.8% |
| Sharon LarosePsychiatry & Neurology | Biloxi | 71 | 142 | +100% |
| Frankie StanleyPsychiatry | Belden | 304 | 645 | +112.2% |
| Kirtida DesaiPsychiatry & Neurology | Whitfield | 42 | 92 | +119% |
| Tongii ShaversPsychiatry | Gulfport | 40 | 91 | +127.5% |
| Douglas ByrdPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | 61 | 150 | +145.9% |
| Mason JahnkePsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | 13 | 35 | +169.2% |
| Santrise GoreePsychiatry | Tupelo | 34 | 99 | +191.2% |
| Gregory GordonPsychiatry | Flowood | 39 | 128 | +228.2% |
| Kalyan KandraPsychiatry | Jackson | 57 | 218 | +282.5% |
| Robert CulpepperPsychiatry | Oxford | 69 | 280 | +305.8% |
| Saurabh BhardwajPsychiatry | Jackson | 35 | 170 | +385.7% |
| Veera Venkata Satyan KommisettiPsychiatry | Jackson | 114 | 686 | +501.8% |
| Allen RichertPsychiatry | Jackson | 15 | 123 | +720% |
| Dominic AdamsPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 117 | — |
| Theodora BrownePsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 77 | — |
| Jonathan SadlerPsychiatry | Pearl | — | 74 | — |
| William SmithPsychiatry & Neurology | Pascagoula | — | 52 | — |
| Basim Ahmed KhanPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 51 | — |
| Michael CollinsPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 49 | — |
| Brankica StanisicPsychiatry | Hattiesburg | — | 47 | — |
| Kaitlyn SalterPsychiatry | Flowood | — | 44 | — |
| Joshua TrullPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 41 | — |
| Vladimir TchikrizovPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 40 | — |
| Geetika GuptaPsychiatry | Jackson | — | 36 | — |
| Kenneth DaughtreyPsychiatry | Collins | — | 33 | — |
| Osman AtharPsychiatry | Jackson | — | 31 | — |
| Peyton ThigpenPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 29 | — |
| Ahmad JilaniPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 29 | — |
| Chasity TorrencePsychiatry & Neurology | Whitfield | — | 28 | — |
| Andrew ForetPsychiatry & Neurology | Whitfield | — | 28 | — |
| Alexis MeadorsPsychiatry | Jackson | — | 26 | — |
| Beatrice HuangPsychiatry & Neurology | Jackson | — | 18 | — |
| Zachary RobinsonPsychiatry | Pearl | — | 18 | — |
| Deewan BulchandaniPsychiatry & Neurology | Whitfield | — | 16 | — |
| Shenitta MoorePsychiatry & Neurology | Greenwood | — | 14 | — |
| Jared TaylorPsychiatry | Jackson | — | 14 | — |
| Avani PatelPsychiatry & Neurology | Ridgeland | — | 14 | — |
| Renee ReichertPsychiatry & Neurology | Southaven | — | 13 | — |
| Paul KingPsychiatry | Olive Branch | — | 12 | — |
| Anna DeleonPsychiatry | Jackson | — | 11 | — |
| Kirolos AdlyPsychiatry | Biloxi | — | 11 | — |
| Allison RadleyPsychiatry | Hattiesburg | — | 11 | — |
Figures are reproduced from the CMS public use files without alteration. Clinicians who believe a row misstates their record can write to support@taperoffbenzos.com and we will check it against the source file and correct or remove it.
Finding a prescriber in Mississippi
This data describes prescribing patterns; it does not tell you who will support a slow taper. For that, our guide to finding a benzo-wise prescriber compares every free provider directory that exists and lists the five questions that predict how a taper will go. If you already have a prescriber, the taper calculator generates a schedule to review with them.
Frequently asked questions
Is benzodiazepine prescribing rising or falling in Mississippi?
It fell 38.9% between 2013 and 2024 in Medicare Part D — a steeper fall than the country as a whole, where prescribing fell 12.9%. In 2024, Mississippi recorded 276,786 benzodiazepine claims across 55,795 patients.
How does Mississippi compare to other states?
Mississippi ranks 14 of 51 for prescribing intensity, at 4.96 benzodiazepine fills per patient per year, and 1 of 51 for the size of its decline since 2013 (1 being the steepest fall).
Which benzodiazepine is prescribed most in Mississippi?
Alprazolam, at 103,927 claims — 37.5% of the state's benzodiazepine prescribing in 2024. Next are Clonazepam (28.2%) and Lorazepam (17%).
Source
CMS Medicare Part D Prescribers public use files, data years 2013–2024 (US Government work, public domain). Medicare Part D only — it excludes commercial insurance and cash-pay, skews toward patients 65 and over, and suppresses cells of 10 or fewer claims. Full methodology and limitations are on the national page.