A California Senate committee has declined to advance a bipartisan bill that would have created a psilocybin pilot program for military veterans and former first responders.
After moving through two other panels with unanimous support, the measure from Sens. Josh Becker (D) and Brian Jones (R) was shelved by the Senate Appropriations Committee on Friday—with members declining to take it up or designate it as a two-year bill that could be revived later in the session.
The proposal as amended in a prior committee would have established a pilot program that would have been overseen by the University of California (UC) system. UC would have been requested to study and develop “psilocybin services” for eligible patients in up to five counties across the state in partnership with licensed clinics.
The universities would have been responsible for “protocol design, institutional review board approvals, training of psilocybin facilitators, data collection, and reporting” of the pilot program.
Under the legislation, the state would have also established a “Veterans and First Responders Research Pilot Special Fund,” with continuous appropriations to fund the work.
“Emerging research suggests that psilocybin and psilocyn, when used in a controlled setting, may offer significant benefits in treating mental health disorders, particularly those related to trauma and stress,” the bill’s findings section said.
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