Tag: psilocybin

Connecticut Lawmakers File Psilocybin Decriminalization Bill Despite Governor’s Concerns

Connecticut lawmakers have revived an effort to decriminalize low-level possession of psilocybin, despite the governor’s office recently indicating that it has concerns about the psychedelics reform.

A new bill filed by the legislature’s Joint Judiciary Committee and cosponsored by Rep. David Michel (D) would make possession of up to one-half an ounce of psilocybin punishable by a $150 fine, without the threat of jail time.

A second or subsequent violation would carry a fine of at least $200 but not more than $500. A person who pleads guilty or no contest on two separate occasions would be referred to a substance misuse treatment program

Police would be require to seize and destroy any amount of the psychedelic they find under the measure, HB 5297. Possession of more than a half-ounce of psilocybin would be considered a Class A misdemeanor.

An earlier version of the psilocybin decriminalization bill passed the House last year but did not advance in the Senate.

Lawmakers and activists held an informational forum last month to discuss the therapeutic potential of substances such as psilocybin and potential pathways to allow for regulated access.

“We are inspired by the leadership of the Judiciary Committee to continue the conversation on how to responsibly decriminalize psilocybin and stand ready to assist the legislature and the governor in working through any concerns,” Jason Ortiz, policy director of Connecticut for Accessible Psychedelic Medicine who also serves as director of strategic initiatives for the Last Prisoner Project, told Marijuana Moment.

“While the bill is a great start, there’s still room for improvement by including home cultivation and retroactive relief for those who were criminalized for simply seeking a better quality of life,” he said.

Meanwhile, as the legislation is being introduced, the office of Gov. Ned Lamont (D) has signaled that it may face a major barrier to enactment.

“The governor has concerns about broad decriminalization of mushrooms,” spokesperson David Bednarz said last month, noting that at the time it was “a bit too early to speculate” because a 2024 bill had not yet been filed yet.

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Rhode Island Bill Would Allow Psilocybin Cultivation, Possession Under 1 Ounce

Several states across the U.S. are forging ahead with their respective psilocybin reform programs, largely embracing policy changes around possession and cultivation while working to implement therapeutic practices involving the “magic mushroom” compound. 

And kicking off the new year, more states are looking to join those ranks. Most recently, Rhode Island Rep. Brandon Potter (D) introduced his proposal — described in his own words as a decriminalization model — with a number of details standing apart from reform measures that have already been enacted.

The bill, H 7047, would remove penalties around possession, home cultivation and sharing of one ounce or less of psilocybin. The bill specifically notes exemptions for psilocybin, so long as it is “in possession of one person or shared by one person to another” and that psilocybin “has been secretly cultivated within a person’s residence for personal use.” The bill would not work to establish a psilocybin retail system, though that could shift along with broader policy.

The bill also leaves room for potential evolution in federal law, namely if psilocybin ends up being rescheduled on the Drug Enforcement Agency’s (DEA) Controlled Substances Act (CSA). The compound is currently classified as a Schedule I controlled substance.

The measure suggests that the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), referred to incorrectly in some of the bill’s language as the “Federal Drug Administration,” would be the authority responsible for rescheduling psilocybin, though this is typically a job of the DEA. The FDA, however, has the ability to approve specific pharmaceutical drugs.

The bill notes that provisions could shift, should federal access to psilocybin expand to include “patients with a serious or life-threatening mental or behavioral health disorder, who are without access to effective mental or behavioral health medication.” In that case, the bill references that psilocybin could be available in the state in locations approved by the Rhode Island Department of Health.

Another notable distinction is the temporary nature of the bill, which would take effect on July 1, 2024 and sunset on July 1, 2026.

Prior to this date, the attorney general would need to provide a report to the speaker of the house and the president of the Senate, providing data on the number of violations issued for psilocybin possession, cultivation and distribution. The director of the Department of Health would also be required to provide a report to the same parties surrounding the scheduling of psilocybin and “permitted use for the treatment of mental or behavioral health disorders.”

While the bill has a number of specific differences from many that have already been enacted, this is by design according to Potter. In an interview with Marijuana Moment, he said that the bill is meant to provide more flexible accessibility for those who may benefit from the effects of psilocybin.

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New Mexico Senate Passes Psilocybin Therapy And Research Resolution In Unanimous Vote

The New Mexico Senate has unanimously approved a bipartisan resolution requesting that state officials research the therapeutic potential of psilocybin and explore the creation of a regulatory framework to provide access to the psychedelic.

The body voted 37-0 to pass the measure from Senate Minority Whip Craig Brandt (R) and Sen. Jeff Steinborn (D).

The action came days after the Health and Public Affairs Committee had approved the legislation, also unanimously.

As “memorial” legislation, the proposal isn’t binding. Rather, it would represent a formal request for the state Department of Health to “study the efficacy of using psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic treatments and the establishment of a program for psilocybin mushrooms to be used for therapeutic medical treatments.”

The whereas section of the resolution cites various studies supporting the therapeutic benefits of psilocybin for conditions such as major depression and substance misuse, while pointing out that the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has designated the psychedelic as a “breakthrough therapy.”

To that end, the measure states that the health department should look into “necessary statutory or regulatory framework for developing” a state-level psilocybin program.

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Arizona Senate Committee Unanimously Approves Bill To Legalize Psilocybin Service Centers

An Arizona Senate committee has unanimously approved a bipartisan bill that would legalize psilocybin service centers where people could receive the psychedelic in a medically supervised setting.

Shortly after a coalition of Republican senators, first responders and military veterans held a press conference to raise attention to the benefits of psychedelic medicines, the Senate Health and Human Services Committee convened for a hearing where members discussed the psilocybin legislation, which is sponsored by the chairman, Sen. T. J. Shope (R), and voted to pass it 7-0.

The measure would allow the Department of Human Services (DHS) to license psilocybin-assisted therapy centers in the state, where trained facilitators could administer the psychedelic.

The senator’s bill would significantly expand on Arizona’s existing research-focused psychedelics law that provides $5 million in annual funding to support studies into psilocybin therapy.

Under the new bill, an Arizona Psilocybin Advisory Board would be established, comprised of members appointed by the governor and legislative leaders. Representatives of the attorney general’s office and DHS, as well as military veterans, first responders, scientists with experience with psilocybin and physicians would be among the members.

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New Mexico Senate Committee Unanimously Approves Psilocybin Therapy And Research Resolution

A New Mexico Senate committee has unanimously approved a bipartisan resolution requesting that state officials research the therapeutic potential of psilocybin and explore the creation of a regulatory framework to provide access to the psychedelic.

The Senate Health and Public Affairs Committee voted 7-0 to pass the resolution from Senate Minority Whip Craig Brandt (R) and Sen. Jeff Steinborn (D) on Saturday.

As “memorial” legislation, the bicameral proposal wouldn’t be binding. Rather, it would represent a formal request for the state Department of Health to “study the efficacy of using psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic treatments and the establishment of a program for psilocybin mushrooms to be used for therapeutic medical treatments.”

The whereas section of the resolution cites various studies supporting the therapeutic benefits of psilocybin for conditions such as major depression and substance misuse, while pointing out that the federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has designated the psychedelic as a “breakthrough therapy.”

To that end, the measure states that the health department should look into “necessary statutory or regulatory framework for developing” a state-level psilocybin program.

“This can help people very potentially, and so what we’re trying to do in a bipartisan way is ask the Department of Health to recognize that we want them to get going to start looking at this,” Steinborn said during Saturday’s committee hearing.

The measure “really seeks to expand therapeutic options for New Mexicans,” he said.

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Indiana House Panel Approves Psilocybin Research Bill That Already Passed Full Senate

An Indiana House committee has approved a Republican-led bill that would fund clinical research trials into psilocybin that has already cleared the full Senate.

After adopting one amendment, the House Public Health Committee advanced the legislation in a 12-1 vote on Tuesday.

“This is not fringe science at this point, so my original intent was to elevate this potential,” Sen. Ed Charbonneau (R), the bill’s sponsor, told panel members ahead of the vote. “It creates hope for people that currently are in hopeless situations.”

“I think it’s important that we get clear right up front that this bill does not make anything legal that’s illegals today,” he said, highlighting the research-focused nature of the legislation.

Rep. Brad Barrett (R), who chairs the committee, said he was initially “incredibly skeptical” of psilocybin’s therapeutic potential but was moved by testimony he heard during an interim study session on the issue that lawmakers convened last year and “left there with the same kind of feeling” that Charbonneau expressed about the psychedelic’s ability to help people.

Last week, the Senate passed the psychedelics measure in a 47-1 vote. That followed the proposal being passed unanimously by the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Health and Provider Services Committee.

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DEA Failed To Explain Rejection Of Psilocybin Waiver To Treat Cancer Patients, Federal Appeals Court Challenge Says

Lawyers for a doctor in Washington State seeking to legally use psilocybin for end-of-life care argue in a new federal appeals court filing that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) failed to explain a key decision when it denied him access to the psychedelic. They’re asking judges to reverse that move, calling it arbitrary and capricious, and order the government to review the matter anew.

The opening brief filed in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit last week is the latest development in what’s become a years-long effort by Dr. Sunil Aggarwal and the Advanced Integrative Medical Science (AIMS) Institute to treat terminally ill cancer patients with psilocybin.

The new action takes aim against DEA’s decision in 2022 to deny Aggarwal’s requests to access psilocybin under state and federal right-to-try (RTT) laws, which give patients with terminal conditions the opportunity to try investigational medications that have not been approved for general use.

Washington State adopted a right-to-try law in 2017, and then-President Donald Trump signed the federal Right to Try Act the following year. Dozens of other states have enacted their own right-to-try policies.

Over the years, Aggarwal has presented DEA with multiple proposals in order either to legally cultivate or otherwise obtain psilocybin to treat his patients, arguing that the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA) must accommodate a path to legally accessing the substance under RTT laws.

“DEA has rejected each request,” the new brief says, “but has never addressed the arguments that Dr. Aggarwal has raised in support of them.”

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Psilocybin, LSD And Other Psychedelics Improve Sexual Satisfaction For Months After Use, New Study Finds

Psychedelic substances, including psilocybin mushrooms, LSD and others, may improve sexual function—even months after a psychedelic experience, according to a new study.

The findings, published on Wednesday in Nature Scientific Reports, are based largely on a survey of 261 participants both before and after taking psychedelics. Researchers from Imperial College London’s Centre for Psychedelic Research then combined those responses with results of a separate clinical trial that compared psilocybin and a commonly prescribed selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRIs) for treating depression.

Authors say it’s the first scientific study to formally explore the effects of psychedelics on sexual functioning. While anecdotal reports and and qualitative evidence suggest the substances may be beneficial, the study says, “this has never been formally tested.”

“It’s important to stress our work does not focus on what happens to sexual functioning while people are on psychedelics, and we are not talking about perceived ‘sexual performance,’” said Tommaso Barba, a PhD student at the Centre for Psychedelic Research and the lead author of the study, “but it does indicate there may be a lasting positive impact on sexual functioning after their psychedelic experience, which could potentially have impacts on psychological wellbeing.”

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Rhode Island House Panel Weighs Bill That Would Temporarily Legalize Psilocybin

Lawmakers on Rhode Island’s House Judiciary Committee considered a bill on Thursday that would effectively legalize psilocybin mushrooms in the state, temporarily removing penalties around possession, home cultivation and sharing of psilocybin until mid-2026.

The proposal, H. 7047, from Rep. Brandon Potter (D), would not establish a commercial retail system around the psychedelic—at least until after federal reform is enacted. Until then, it would exempt up to an ounce of psilocybin from the state’s law against controlled substances provided that it “has been securely cultivated within a person’s residence for personal use” or is possessed by “one person or shared by one person to another.”

The measure is identical to a bill passed 56–11 by the House last year, though that matter did not move forward in the Senate before the end of the session.

“I don’t think it was that long ago that if you were to put a proposal like this forward, it would be thought of as very controversial,” Potter told the panel on Thursday. “But I think it’s become much more popularized and people are well aware of it, especially when you see just like the abundance and overwhelming amount of clinical research and medical science that is promoting the effects this has had on people.”

“These are not, you know, small, low-budget operations,” he added of emerging scientific research indicating the therapeutic potential of psilocybin. “These are leading medical institutions like Johns Hopkins and Yale and Stanford and so on and so forth—NYU, Columbia.”

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NJ looks to make magic mushrooms legal for recreational use and to treat mental health

It took at least five years of public debate, lobbying and bill amendments for New Jersey to make marijuana legal for recreational use in 2021. Now the state may do the same with psychedelic mushrooms — but much faster.

After it was pulled back for revisions late last year, a bill was reintroduced in the state Senate last week that sets up a legal framework for the manufacture and sale of products containing psilocybin — the chemical in magic mushrooms that produces a hallucinogenic effect.

The bill would decriminalize the use of psilocybin by anyone over 21 and expunge past and pending offenses involving the drug.

Although language in the bill, called the “Psilocybin Behavioral Health Access and Services Act,” is centered around mental health, its provisions would decriminalize recreational use. Anyone 21 or older could “possess, store, use, ingest, inhale, process, transport” 4 grams or less of psilocybin.

Unlike with marijuana, residents would be allowed to grow their own mushrooms for personal use in their homes under the bill.

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