Editorial policy

Our editorial standard

Every page on usaPsdletter.com should be accurate, sourced and useful to someone deciding what to do next. The National Library of Medicine's MedlinePlus advises readers to look for health sites that cite their sources, explain who reviews content, separate information from advertising, and show when content was updated. We aim to meet each of those tests.

We also run a service that sells psychiatric service dog (PSD) letters. We say so plainly, and we keep our educational content honest about what a letter can and cannot do, even where that limits what we sell.

How we research a page

We start with primary sources: the laws, regulations and official guidance that actually govern service dogs, and health information from public agencies and major medical organizations. Secondary sources are used only to add context, never to support a legal claim on their own.

• Law and regulation: ADA.gov (U.S. Department of Justice), HUD, the U.S. Department of Transportation, the Electronic Code of Federal Regulations (eCFR), the EEOC and the Job Accommodation Network
• Health: the National Institute of Mental Health, MedlinePlus, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and PTSD.va.gov, NAMI, and peer-reviewed research indexed in PubMed
• Dog training basics: the American Kennel Club, for programs such as Canine Good Citizen
• State law: official state statutes and agency pages only

How we cite sources

Each guide lists the sources it relies on, usually three to six, with a link to the original page. We cite a source only after reading it and confirming it supports the point we make. We do not invent studies, numbers, quotes or links.

When the evidence is limited, we say so. For example, research on psychiatric service dogs for PTSD is promising but still limited, and we describe it that way rather than overstating it.

How we write

We write in plain language, in the second person, with short paragraphs and specific headings, so you can find what you need quickly. We use respectful, person-first language about mental health. Legal terms are explained the first time they appear, and our glossary covers the ones that come up most.

Where federal rules and our service meet, we keep them separate: what the law says comes from the cited source, and what we offer is described in our own words with our actual prices and process.

Clinical review by Andrew Patel, M.D.

Andrew Patel, M.D., a physician on our team, is the clinical reviewer of this site's content. He reviews pages that discuss mental health conditions, the evaluation process and what clinicians can document, checking that clinical descriptions are accurate, respectful and consistent with the cited sources.

Clinical review is not legal review. Our pages explain federal and state rules in plain language, but they are not legal advice. For a specific dispute, we point readers to the agency that enforces the law or suggest speaking with a lawyer.

What we won't publish

Pages that discuss mental health conditions include a reminder that a dog does not replace treatment, and point to 988 (call or text) or 911 for anyone in crisis.

• Promises of approval, acceptance by a landlord or airline, or any other outcome
• Words like certified, registered, official or instant to describe a letter, because they have no legal meaning for service dogs
• Testimonials, reviews or statistics we cannot verify
• Claims that a letter grants public access; under the ADA it does not
• Language that stigmatizes mental illness

How we keep content current

Service animal rules change. The Department of Transportation's air travel rule, for example, changed how airlines treat emotional support animals starting in 2021. We review our core legal pages whenever a relevant federal rule or official guidance changes, and we revisit every page on a regular cycle to check that its sources still load and still say what we report.

When we make a substantive change, such as a new rule, a corrected fact or a changed price, we update the page and its review date. Minor edits for clarity or typos do not change the date.

Corrections

If you spot something inaccurate or out of date, email support@usapsdletter.com with the page address and the source that shows the issue. We review every correction request and update the page if we confirm the error.