Policies

Disclaimer

General

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) is committed to protecting your privacy. We do not disclose, give, sell, or transfer any personal information about visitors to our websites, unless required by law or court order.

We do not collect any personally identifiable information about you when you visit our website (other than the standard information automatically collected and stored on our server logs) unless you choose to give it to us. For more information about the type of information we collect, view our Privacy Policy. 

NIMH privacy policies are consistent with the NIH Privacy Policies and the HHS Privacy Policy.

Medical Information

As a federal research agency, NIMH does not provide specific medical advice. Please consult with a qualified health care provider for diagnosis, treatment, and answers to your medical questions.

For questions related to mental health research, requests for copies of publications, and inquiries concerning NIMH research, policies, and priorities, please contact the NIMH Information Resource Center at 1-866-615-6464 or nimhinfo@nih.gov.

Linking Policy and Disclaimer of Endorsement

NIMH does not endorse or recommend any commercial products or services on our website. We may include links to websites created and maintained by other public and private organizations. These references are not an official endorsement and may not be quoted or reproduced in a way that implies NIMH endorsement or approval of any product, person, or service.

When you select a link to an organization outside of NIMH, you are subject to the privacy and security policies of that website. We cannot control or guarantee the accuracy, relevance, timeliness, or completeness of information contained on externally linked websites.

NIMH does not endorse links on other organization’s websites, and we do not endorse the views they express or the products/services they offer.

NIMH cannot authorize the use of copyrighted materials contained in linked websites. You must request permission to use these materials from the owner of that website.

NIMH cannot guarantee that outside websites comply with Section 508 (accessibility requirements) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

Pop-Up Advertisements

When visiting our website, your web browser may produce "pop-up" advertisements (advertisements that spontaneously appear on your computer screen). The most likely source of such an advertisement is another website you visited or third-party software on your computer. NIMH does not endorse or recommend products or services featured in advertisements that "pop up" during your visit to our site.

Copyright Policy

Information and Publications

The written information on our website and in our publications is in the public domain and may be reproduced without permission. However, the images in NIMH publications and on our website are used for illustrative purposes only; most are stock photos posed by models and may not be used for other purposes.

We encourage you to copy our publications and use them in your efforts to improve public health. If you use our materials, we request that you cite the National Institute of Mental Health. In some cases, the NIMH website presents and cites materials from other federal agencies. We request that you use the citations that we provide if you use those materials.

Misusing government materials can be unlawful, so we ask that you follow these guidelines:

• Do not alter NIMH content in a way that will jeopardize the integrity and brand of the Institute.
• Do not add logos to NIMH publications or materials.
• Images in NIMH publications and on our website may not be copied or used for other purposes, even if cited.
• Do not use NIMH publications to advertise or endorse commercial products, processes, or services.
• Do not use NIMH publications to give the appearance of providing specific medical advice, treatment recommendations, or referrals.

If you have questions regarding these guidelines and the use of NIMH content, please get in touch with the NIMH Information Resource Center at 1-866-615-6464 or nimhinfo@nih.gov.

Comment Guidelines

We encourage you to share your thoughts, as they relate to the topic being discussed, on our social media channels. NIMH reviews and posts comments according to the guidelines below.

The views expressed in comments reflect those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the official views of NIMH, the National Institutes of Health, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or the federal government.

The NIMH comment guidelines are designed to encourage respectful and constructive dialogue. Comments that include the following are prohibited:

• Vulgar, offensive, obscene, inflammatory, profane, threatening, or abusive language.
• Unlawful or otherwise objectionable statements; personal attacks of any kind; unsupported accusations.
• Discriminatory language (including hate speech) based on race, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, religion, or disability.
• Endorsements of commercial products, services, organizations, or other entities.
• Endorsements of political parties, candidates, or groups.
• Repetitive posts (for example, submission of the same idea multiple times).
• Spam or undecipherable language (gratuitous links will be viewed as spam).
• Content that infringes on copyrights.
• Links to non-governmental external sites.
• Images or videos.
• Solicitation of funds.
• Comments on any ongoing investigation of any sort.
• Procurement-sensitive information related to any current/future NIH acquisitions.
• Surveys, polls, questionnaires, etc., that are subject to Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA) clearance. General information about PRA clearance is available on the NIH Office of Science Policy website. Please contact the NIMH PRA Clearance Team at nimhprapubliccomments@mail.nih.gov if you have any questions.
• Personal identifiable information or sensitive information.
• Off-topic posts.
• Questions from reporters – all media inquiries must be directed to the NIMH Press Team (nimhpress@mail.nih.gov).

By posting your comments or other work to websites owned or administered by NIMH, you irrevocably grant us permission to copy, distribute, make derivatives, display, or perform your work publicly and free-of-charge.

NIMH social media pages are not intended to be public forums. When posting, please do not include information (e.g., name, email, social security numbers) that personally identifies you in a way you do not intend. To learn more about NIMH privacy practices, please view our Privacy Policy.

NIMH recognizes that the web is a 24/7 medium, and your comments are welcome at any time. However, given the need to reasonably manage federal resources, moderating comments should only be expected to occur Monday through Friday during regular business hours. Comments submitted at other times will be reviewed as soon as possible. Please note that NIMH does not respond to individual comments or questions on a routine basis.