Psychedelic Policy Briefing: Week of July 27th, 2026

As federal institutions gradually formalize pathways for psychedelic research, the broader landscape remains defined by steep friction.

In this week’s psychedelic policy briefing, investigative journalist Jack Gorsline breaks down key developments from across the psychedelic industry, including a potential final death blow on Capitol Hill for expanding Right to Try access to schedule 1 drugs this term.

Elsewhere in D.C., whispers are growing louder that a rumored reversal of the FDA’s previous request for new clinical trials before reevaluating a controversial biotech company’s patented MDMA formula.

Just beyond the psychedelic bubble, a recently-advanced intellectual property-focused federal bill seeks to upend the status quo for patented pharmaceutical compounds, signaling a strong interest from congress in reigning in longstanding monopolistic business practices across the pharmaceutical industry.

Here are the three major developments shaping the beat this week.

U.S. House Passes NDAA Amendments to Extend Military Psychedelic Research Through 2033

As first reported by Marijuana Moment, on Wednesday July 22, The U.S. House of Representatives passed drug policy amendments as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The measure extends the Department of Defense’s (DOD) psychedelic therapy research initiative through 2033. The legislative package codifies executive directives aimed at expediting clinical trials for military service members struggling with treatment-resistant PTSD and traumatic brain injury (TBI).

The reform reflects a continued federal bifurcation: while House lawmakers advanced clinical psychedelic research for veterans, the House rules committee blocked proposed waivers for military recruits with prior cannabis infractions. The House also rejected a separate amendment to the NDAA proposed by Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC) and Rep. Madeline Dean (D-PA) that sought to solidify Right to Try access to Schedule I substances.

This congressional rejection of “Right to Try” access-focused NDAA amendment likely signals the end of the road for the Freedom to Heal Act of 2025 as well, which aimed to codify RTT Access to Schedule I substances like psilocybin, MDMA, and ibogaine. Filed on December 4, 2025 by Sen. Corey Booker (D-NJ) and Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), the bill was backed prominently by advocacy organizations Reason for Hope, BrainFutures, and the Veteran Mental Health Leadership Coalition (VHMLC), the bill generated significant media coverage and a public endorsement from former Arizona Senator Kyrsten Sinema, who is the subject of a Department of Justice complaint alleging illegal lobbying activity. However, as I reported for DoubleBlind Magazine back in March, leaked email correspondence from key Senate Veteran Affairs Committee (SVAC) staffers appeared to indicate that the bill never had any legs in Congress.

Rumors of FDA Re-Evaluation for Resilient Pharmaceuticals

Resilient Pharmaceuticals (formerly Lykos Therapeutics) is expected to be granted a full reevaluation of its MDMA-assisted therapy treatment from the FDA without being required to conduct new Phase III clinical trials. According to multiple sources with knowledge of the company’s ongoing negotiations with the FDA, Resilient could resubmit by the end of the year, or possibly even by the end of July.

Psychedelic Alpha founder Josh Hardman first reported on a possible reevaluation of the original clinical data earlier this year, and noted on Twitter/X last week that a formal resubmission could happen by the end of July.

A reversal from the FDA would contrast with the agency’s request for Resilient to conduct new Phase III clinical trials in a Complete Response Letter (CRL) sent to the company following the initial rejection of its New Drug Application (NDA) for its patented MDMA formula. Additionally, three research studies evaluating long-term outcomes of Phase II clinical trial participants following MDMA-assisted therapy were formally retracted by Psychopharmacology in August 2024. The prominent academic journal cited “protocol violations amounting to unethical conduct… by researchers associated with this project.”

The retraction notice stated that the authors “confirmed they were aware of these violations… but did not disclose this information to the journal or remove data generated by this site from their analysis.”

Administrative and industry influence on the rumored reevaluation could have played a role as well. President Trump reportedly exerted significant influence on the FDA’s decision to approve flavored nicotine vapes earlier this year, and Trump has openly stated that a text from Podcaster Joe Rogan spurred his decision to sign a psychedelic research-focused Executive Order back in April. What’s more, one of Resilient’s largest shareholders is Venture Capitalist Antonio Gracias, a prominent Silicon Valley aly of SpaceX Founder Elon Musk who served alongside Musk as a Special Government Employee under Trump’s since-shuttered Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and helped lead a takeover of Resilient/Lykos in May 2025 after connecting with company founder Rick Doblin at Burning Man.

Per reporting from The Guardian, it was at the annual festival in Black Rock City, Nevada that Gracias initially advised Doblin to cut his losses with Lykos altogether and start fresh, before ultimately teaming up with British billionaire hedge fund manager Christopher Hohn.

MA Lawmakers Advance Two Competing Psychedelic Pilot Program Bills

Two bills designed to establish psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot programs in Massachusetts have advanced to the House Committee on Ways and Means. The Joint Committee on Health Care Financing recently issued favorable recommendations for House Bill 4200 and House Bill 2203, continuing the legislative momentum after both measures cleared the Joint Committee on Mental Health, Substance Use and Recovery. House Bill 4200, introduced by state Rep. James O’Day, would authorize the Department of Public Health to license a maximum of three mental health centers for supervised psychedelic treatments, mandating that the participating clinics remain independent from pharmaceutical companies and drug developers.

However, the push for a strictly medicalized rollout has sparked scrutiny over the growing influence of private capital. Control Z Health co-founder Colin Beatty testified alongside O’Day in June 2025 to support the pilot while harshly criticizing broader decriminalization efforts like Question 4, labeling adult-use access an “irrational exuberance.” While Beatty claimed his advocacy is rooted in a desire to provide humane medical care, grassroots activists like Jamie Morey and Graham Moore of Mass Healing have raised concerns regarding his previous addiction treatment venture, Column Health.

A companion measure sponsored by state Rep. Marjorie Decker, House Bill 2203, would create a two-year psilocybin pilot program strictly for adults 21 and older. Following U.S. Food and Drug Administration guidelines, the initiative would partner university researchers with community groups to oversee clinical protocols and evaluate psilocybin’s effectiveness in treating depression, PTSD and end-of-life distress. State officials are expected to analyze the pilot’s community impact and the feasibility of eventual MassHealth coverage before the legislation goes before the full House for a vote.

These legislative advancements are unfolding in the wake of the scandal-plagued failure of a 2024 psychedelics-focused ballot initiative and alongside a notable spike in lobbying spending on Beacon Hill. As I’ve previously reported for Lucid News, Compass Pathways, a company pursuing FDA approval for a synthetic psilocybin drug, poured $54,000 into lobbying the governor’s office and the Executive Office of Veterans Services during the first half of 2025 — a significant jump from $32,100 the previous year. Traditional health care organizations are also spending heavily to mold the state’s upcoming psychedelic framework, with Health New England Inc. and the Massachusetts Association of Health Plans spending a combined $140,000 over the first six months of the year.

Legal & Corporate IP: Senate Passes S. 1041 to Curb Biologic Patent Thickets

On July 21, 2026, the United States Senate unanimously approved the bipartisan Affordable Prescriptions for Patients Act (S. 1041). The bill imposes a statutory cap of 20 patents that brand-name drug manufacturers can assert against biosimilar applicants during litigation.

This proposed bill aims to crack down on “patent thickets,” a tactic used by pharmaceutical companies to prolong their monopolies on biologic drugs. Historically, large drug manufacturers have manipulated the patent system by registering numerous minor, overlapping patents for a single medication, effectively preventing cheaper alternatives from reaching the public.

By removing these legal roadblocks, lawmakers expect the legislation to significantly lower out-of-pocket expenses for patients who depend on these crucial treatments. Additionally, opening up the market to more competition should save government healthcare programs like Medicare and Medicaid billions of dollars over time. The bill is now moving to the House of Representatives, where patient advocates are pressing for its rapid approval so these vital pricing reforms can quickly become law.

While the bill specifically pertains to “biologic patent thickets” – the precedent-setting nature of the bill signals an appetite from members of both political parties for broader patent thicketting reform in the future.

This article was produced in partnership with Psychedelic State(s) of America – a nonprofit-sponsored news organization dedicated to rigorous independent psychedelic journalism. Learn more about PSA’s Media Partnerships Program and donate to the PSA Media Fund here.

June 17, 2026June 17, 2026

Psychedelic Policy Briefing: Week of June 16, 2026

Legislative Push Meets Bureaucratic Restraints

By Jack Gorsline

(WASHINGTON, D.C.) Federal psychedelic policy in 2026 is splitting in two directions at once. Lawmakers and military officials are building healthcare infrastructure for experimental therapeutics, while enforcement agencies freeze access pathways and move to criminalize new compounds. The same government that is fast-tracking psilocybin trials for veterans is using emergency powers to ban a ketamine analog that law enforcement has encountered 52 times in eight years.

Military and Congressional Infrastructure Pushes

The House Armed Services Committee has integrated new provisions into the Fiscal Year 2027 National Defense Authorization Act, directing military leadership to investigate access pathways to psychedelic therapies for service members. Pointing to President Donald Trump’s recent executive order on the issue that was signed on April 18, the committee is compelling the Department of Defense to track lawful research into treatments for conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder, explicitly instructing the DOD to examine naturally derived whole-mushroom compounds administered in therapeutic settings. The defense secretary must submit a detailed report by Feb. 1, 2027, evaluating clinical trial data, outlining the regulatory framework necessary for broader access, and projecting a timeline to launch pilot programs and expand clinical research starting in fiscal year 2027.

This legislative push follows a recent DOD award of $4.9 million to Emory University and UT Health San Antonio to study MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD. The trial, which aims to enroll 100 active-duty military and reserve personnel to evaluate the synergistic effects of MDMA combined with prolonged exposure therapy, has already begun screening prospective participants for on-site research at Emory.

Concurrently, the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee (SVAC) reviewed the bipartisan Veterans Health Administration Novel Therapeutics Preparedness Act of 2026, known as S.4220, on April 29. Introduced by Sens. Tim Sheehy and Ruben Gallego, the legislation requires the Department of Veterans Affairs to establish an Office of Novel Therapeutics to develop clinical standards and readiness plans ahead of potential U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approvals for psychedelic compounds like psilocybin, ibogaine, and MDMA. The measure would also prohibit restrictive “step therapy” rules and establish a Veteran Advisory Committee to monitor patient safety.

Lawmakers and veteran advocates stressed the urgent need for these reforms, arguing that without proper infrastructure, veterans could wait years for care or risk their lives seeking dangerous, unregulated treatments abroad.

The push for this new VA infrastructure unfolds against a complex backdrop of federal funding threats, industry controversies, and rapid administrative action. While the administration’s proposed budget threatens major cuts to science agencies like the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health (NIH), recent executive orders and FDA initiatives, such as awarding National Priority Vouchers to expedite reviews, are simultaneously accelerating the federal timeline for psychedelic medicines. At the same time, the growing psychedelics sector is facing heightened scrutiny, marked by ethics complaints over the mishandling of taxpayer data and alleged lobbying violations involving prominent political figures such as former Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema and former California Rep. Mimi Walters, alongside her organization, The Association for Prescription Psychedelics (APP).

As for the broader psychedelic policy reform landscape on Capitol Hill, S.4220 is among three bills focused on psychedelics being reviewed this legislative session. Another is the Innovative Therapies Centers of Excellence Act of 2026, a proposal from Sens. Gallego and McCormick (R-PA) designed to establish dedicated VA facilities for the advancement of psychedelic treatments.

DEA Regulatory Friction and Stagnation

While the military’s expanding interest in psychedelics draws mainstream media attention, a separate federal reform effort at the Drug Enforcement Administration has stalled. Attorney Kathryn Tucker, co-counsel representing Dr. Sunil Aggarwal’s petition to reschedule psilocybin from Schedule I to Schedule II, has voiced significant concerns over recent delays. Last fall, the petition appeared to be advancing rapidly when the DEA forwarded it to the Department of Health and Human Services for scientific review, three years after Aggarwal’s initial legal challenge.

Yet despite Trump’s executive order aiming to streamline access to psychedelic medicines, and an anticipated FDA approval decision on Compass Pathways’ synthetic psilocybin compound, COMP360, expected in late 2026 or early 2027, progress has ground to a halt. In response, Tucker recently filed another motion urging the DEA and the Justice Department to act immediately on the years-old petition to allow terminally ill patients access to psilocybin, arguing that further delays are unjustified given the drug’s FDA breakthrough therapy designation.

Compounding this slowdown, the DEA announced its intent to use emergency scheduling powers to classify 2-fluorodeschloroketamine, a structural analog of ketamine known as 2-FDCK, as a Schedule I substance, effectively banning it. While the DEA claims the compound poses an imminent hazard to public safety, critics and drug policy reform advocates argue the move is an overreach, pointing out that law enforcement has encountered the drug only 52 times over the last eight years. Attorney Robert Rush, founder of The Rights and Reason Project, told Filter Magazine following the DEA’s announcement of the move that using emergency powers to bypass standard public hearings and scientific review will stifle research into promising new mental health treatments while pushing individuals toward increasingly dangerous, unregulated illicit drug markets.

Ibogaine Sourcing Challenges and FDA Leadership Reshuffle

At the same time, top Trump administration officials recently acknowledged that expanded access to ibogaine could face delays because of difficulties sourcing the psychoactive alkaloid for clinical research. Testifying before the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, Veterans Affairs Secretary Doug Collins highlighted the president’s recent executive order on psychedelics but noted that establishing a federal ibogaine supply poses logistical and financial challenges.

“We also have to have a federal source of sourcing the ibogaine, which we don’t have a costing on at this point,” Collins said. Despite the sourcing challenges, Collins said VA trials for MDMA are currently ahead of schedule. He emphasized the department is committed to exploring any treatment that helps veterans and is working with HHS to develop the rigorous clinical protocols required for the intensive therapies.

In a significant change for psychedelic drug developers seeking FDA approval over the next few years, the agency appointed Dr. Mike Davis as the new deputy director of its Center for Drug Evaluation and Research. A physician who recently served as chief medical officer for the psychedelic research group Usona Institute, Davis is returning to the FDA after previously working as a clinical team leader in its Psychiatry Division from 2018 to 2022. He rejoins the agency during a broader leadership transition. Former FDA Commissioner Marty Makary resigned on May 12, 2026, after clashing with the White House over Trump’s decision to approve flavored nicotine vapes, and former CDER Director Jacqueline Corrigan-Curay has retired.

The contradictions are not abstract. The VA is running MDMA trials ahead of schedule while the DEA moves to ban a ketamine analog without a public hearing. Congress is ordering the Pentagon to map access pathways to whole-mushroom psilocybin while a three-year-old rescheduling petition sits unanswered. And the administration’s own VA secretary has admitted there is no federal plan, and no price tag, for sourcing the ibogaine its veterans’ initiative depends on. Whatever reaches patients will be shaped less by the executive rhetoric than by which of these machines moves first.

Note: This article was produced in partnership with Psychedelic State(s) of America, a nonprofit-sponsored news organization dedicated to rigorous independent psychedelic journalism. Learn more about PSA’s Media Partnerships Program and donate to PSA’s Psychedelic Writers Guild Media Fund here.

June 11, 2026June 11, 2026

Psychedelic Policy Briefing: June 11, 2026

The first half of 2026 has brought a surge of psychedelic policy activity at every level of the U.S. government. According to PoliPsy’s Psychedelic Legislation Tracker, lawmakers have filed 111 psychedelic-related bills across 41 states this legislative term, along with seven federal bills on Capitol Hill.

Through an expanded partnership between Psychedelics Today and Psychedelic State(s) of America, I’ll be writing a weekly briefing on essential psychedelic policy developments and political happenings in the U.S. and around the world.

In this inaugural briefing: Michigan lawmakers fight over whether $50 million in opioid settlement funds should pay for ibogaine research. Connecticut expands its psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot beyond veterans and first responders. Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signs an ibogaine pilot program into law, including a national first on Indigenous benefit sharing, while the state tightens its personal use rules. Tennessee enacts the ibogaine-focused HOPE Treatment Act. New York’s Medical Psilocybin Act stalls again. And Maryland funds an MDMA trial comparing group and individual therapy for veterans with PTSD.

Michigan Considers $50 Million in Opioid Settlement Funds for Ibogaine Research

Earlier this year, Michigan state Rep. Jaime Greene (R-Richmond) introduced House Bill 6020, which would allocate $50 million to research the therapeutic potential of ibogaine, a psychoactive alkaloid derived from the root bark of the iboga shrub. The proposed clinical trials would evaluate the drug’s effectiveness in treating opioid use disorder and trauma-related conditions, particularly among military veterans with PTSD, traumatic brain injuries, and chronic pain.

The fight is over the funding source: the Michigan Opioid Healing and Recovery Fund, a restricted state account holding part of the $1.8 billion Michigan received from national opioid settlements. The bill would establish a grant program and direct the state Department of Health and Human Services to form a research consortium of universities, health facilities, and other states. Greene argues that research institutions like the University of Michigan could deliver real clinical breakthroughs for people with opioid dependence.

Democratic lawmakers have pushed back, arguing the settlement dollars should be reserved for proven recovery methods. At a June 2 hearing of the House Families and Veterans Committee, state Reps. Mai Xiong and Carrie Rheingans noted that Michigan has rarely funded experimental clinical trials and argued that expensive, multi-year studies belong with federal funders like the National Institutes of Health or the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. Other lawmakers suggested the $50 million would do more good in recovery housing, clinician education, and harm reduction programs.

Connecticut Expands Psychedelic Therapy Pilot Program Beyond Veterans and First Responders

Last month, Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont signed Senate Bill 191 into law, effectively expanding the state’s psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot program, first established in 2022 to study the mental health effects of substances including psilocybin and MDMA. The program was previously limited to veterans and first responders. The new law opens participation to any adult who meets the program’s clinical requirements, a change meant to resolve recruitment problems and broaden the research base. It also repeals a clause that would have automatically terminated the pilot upon federal approval of these drugs.

The expansion appears designed to prepare Connecticut’s mental health infrastructure for possible FDA approval of a psychedelic-assisted therapy, which some advocates expect as soon as 2027. Funding remains the open question. Connecticut for Accessible Psychedelic Medicine co-founder Victor Constanza told Psychedelic State(s) of America in an interview that the original pilot program has never received an appropriation from the state budget.

Colorado Signs Ibogaine Pilot Program Into Law as Personal Use Rules Tighten

Colorado Gov. Jared Polis signed House Bill 26-1325 last week, creating an ibogaine research pilot program within the state’s Behavioral Health Administration and building on the voter-approved 2022 Natural Medicine Health Act. Sponsored by state Reps. Jarvis Caldwell and Lisa Feret and state Sens. Matt Ball and Rod Pelton, the bipartisan law authorizes up to five research sites to study ibogaine as a treatment for trauma and substance use disorders. Polis called the measure a step toward implementing the will of voters and pointed to ibogaine’s potential to help veterans and other Coloradans recover.

The law also contains a national first. HB 26-1325 requires both pilot sites and future ibogaine licensees to establish benefit-sharing plans with Indigenous communities traditionally connected to the iboga plant. Those plans can include financial sharing, collaborative research, conservation support for iboga species and habitats, and community-identified development priorities. No other state psychedelic law has made benefit sharing a condition of participation.

That provision arrives against a history of friction. In a complaint filed last year, Indigenous leaders argued they had been systematically excluded from Colorado’s policymaking process and warned that implementation of the Natural Medicine Health Act prioritized corporate interests over cultural consultation, threatening the ecological survival and cultural sanctity of traditional plant medicines. Whether the new benefit-sharing requirement answers those concerns will depend on how regulators enforce it.

Tennessee Enacts HOPE Treatment Act for Ibogaine Research

On May 22nd, Gov. Bill Lee signed the Helping Open Pathways to Effective (HOPE) Treatment Act (SB 2149/HB 2075) into law. Sponsored by Sen. Page Walley (R-Savannah) and Rep. Bryan Terry (R-Murfreesboro), the act establishes a legal framework for FDA-authorized clinical trials of ibogaine in Tennessee. It does not legalize the substance, which remains Schedule I under federal law.

The law creates a Council on Emerging Behavioral Health Treatments to authorize qualified Tennessee hospitals, academic medical centers, and research institutions to join multi-state ibogaine trials. Participating institutions must demonstrate FDA compliance, outline safety protocols including cardiac screening, provide patient aftercare plans, and submit quarterly progress and financial reports. Ibogaine may be administered only within clinical trials at hospitals or qualified research facilities, under the supervision of a Tennessee-licensed physician.

Rather than appropriating state money, the act relies on a public-private partnership model. It also creates an Emerging Behavioral Health Treatment Innovation Fund, which will receive at least half of any state revenue generated from intellectual property rights tied to treatments developed through the trials.

Passage followed a sustained advocacy campaign by TN Voices, Americans for Ibogaine, and its state affiliate Tennessee for Ibogaine, including testimony from veterans who traveled to Mexico for ibogaine treatment because none is available legally in the United States. Tennessee becomes the fifth state to formally join the multi-state research effort, following similar laws in Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Texas over the past 18 months.

New York Medical Psilocybin Act Stalls Amid Budget Delays, Despite Praise for Novel Framework

New York lawmakers proposed a highly regulated, state-funded pilot program to provide medical psilocybin to 10,000 veterans, first responders, and patients with cluster headaches. The amended Medical Psilocybin Act incorporates elements of an earlier personal license bill, a shift praised by that bill’s original author, Allison Hoots, a New York psychedelic attorney and executive director of the Sacred Plant Alliance.

“While the original bill created access for people who were not addressing serious health conditions but rather focused on the standard of whether permit holders were healthy enough, the amended bill leans into the [personal license] components that had already existed to promote the benefits of a healthcare provider’s recommendation with individualized plans for therapeutic access,” Hoots previously told DoubleBlind Magazine. That individualized structure includes provisions allowing qualifying patients to take psilocybin home for conditions such as cluster headaches and end-of-life care.

The legislation was championed by a coalition including New Yorkers for Mental Health Alternatives, the Microdosing Collective, and New Approach PAC. (New Approach faces allegations of campaign finance violations raised by former staffers in connection with the 2024 reform campaign in Massachusetts, as reported by Lucid News.) Despite that backing and bipartisan support, coalition leaders confirmed the bill will not advance this session because of time constraints surrounding passage of the annual state budget. Advocates argue the condition-dependent expanded access model could become a template for other state legislatures next year.

Maryland Funds MDMA Trial Comparing Group and Individual Therapy, Amid Local Activist Frustrations

Maryland is advancing psychedelic-assisted therapy research even as the state’s broader reform efforts stall. As first reported by Psychedelic Alpha, the state is partnering with the mental health advocacy nonprofit Reason for Hope and Sunstone Therapies on a 52-patient study of MDMA-assisted therapy for military veterans with PTSD. Backed by a $1 million grant from Maryland’s Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder and Traumatic Brain Injury Alternative Therapies Fund and $525,000 from Reason for Hope, the 12-month trial will directly compare group and individual therapy models, testing whether group delivery can match individual outcomes at lower cost. That question sits at the center of whether these treatments can ever scale.

Legislative progress on broader access remains contested. As Lucid News first reported, lawmakers’ decision to extend the Maryland Task Force on Responsible Use of Natural Psychedelic Substances through 2027 has frustrated local activists, who argue that indefinite advisory periods function as political stall tactics. They are urging lawmakers to model future reform on states like Colorado, Oregon, and New Mexico.

That’s all for this week’s state-level psychedelic policy briefing. Stay tuned later this week for a federal policy briefing, and subscribe to Psychedelics Today and Psychedelic State(s) of America for reporting and analysis on policy developments in the United States and abroad.

Note: This article was produced in partnership with Psychedelic State(s) of America, a nonprofit-sponsored news organization dedicated to rigorous independent psychedelic journalism. Learn more about PSA’s Media Partnerships Program and donate to PSA’s Psychedelic Writers Guild Media Fund.

Search FAQ Section

What states are funding ibogaine research in 2026? Michigan is debating a $50 million allocation for ibogaine trials. Tennessee, Colorado, Oklahoma, Mississippi, and Texas have passed legislation authorizing FDA-supervised ibogaine clinical trials through consortium models.

Does the HOPE Treatment Act legalize ibogaine? No. Tennessee’s HOPE Treatment Act (SB 2149/HB 2075) establishes a legal framework for FDA-authorized research only. Ibogaine remains Schedule I under federal law; the act allows qualified institutions to participate in multi-state trials.

What makes Colorado’s ibogaine law different? Colorado’s HB 26-1325 includes the first state requirement for Indigenous benefit sharing as a condition of participating in an ibogaine program, covering financial sharing, collaborative research, and conservation support.

Which states have expanded psychedelic pilot programs? Connecticut expanded its psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot from veterans and first responders to any adult meeting clinical requirements. Maryland is funding a novel trial comparing group and individual MDMA-assisted therapy for veterans with PTSD.

Why did New York’s Medical Psilocybin Act stall? New York’s bill will not advance this legislative session due to time constraints around the annual state budget, despite bipartisan support and praise for its condition-dependent access model.

June 27, 2025

Victoria Litman – The Future of Psychedelic Regulation Is Local

In this episode, we sit down with Victoria Litman, M.Div., J.D., LL.M., to discuss why the future of psychedelic access in the United States is being shaped not by federal agencies, but by the bold actions of individual states. As a legal scholar and writer focusing on drug policy, Victoria breaks down the significance of the FDA’s 2024 rejection of psychedelic-assisted therapy, and why that decision might be less of a setback than it seems.

We explore how state-level initiatives like Oregon’s Psilocybin Services Act and Colorado’s Natural Medicine Health Act are setting the stage for a new model of access—one rooted in harm reduction, personal liberty, and existing regulatory infrastructure. Victoria discusses the importance of the Tenth Amendment and the Anti-Commandeering Doctrine, which allow states to move forward regardless of federal inaction.

Rather than waiting for slow-moving federal institutions, Victoria argues that states can build safe, scalable systems now—especially by leveraging cannabis infrastructure for psychedelic regulation. She also touches on the ethical and cultural implications of this transition, including protections for spiritual and religious use.

If you’re wondering what psychedelic policy will look like in the years ahead, this episode offers an insightful and hopeful roadmap.

Link to CATO article