The signature gathering process has begun to qualify a ballot initiative that will appear on the California ballot in 2024. This initiative would allocate $5 billion for the creation of a state agency devoted to advancing research, development and use of psychedelic therapy.
The TREAT California Act would not change the legal status for any substances. would instead establish a state-level agency, the Treatment, Research, Education, Access and Therapies Institute, to identify and advance scientific research and development on the therapeutic potentials of psychedelics.
This initiative would give Californians the constitutional right to research all psychedelics except for peyote. These include psilocybin (and other psychedelic substances), ibogaine (and LSD), MDMA (and ketamine), and cannabis.
Jeannie Fontana said, “It is clear that we are in a crisis in mental health care, because conventional therapies are failing to provide relief for those suffering from PTSD and suicide. The effects are catastrophic.” “We must address the inherent limitations in our current system. It’s time to get started.”
The Attorney General’s Office released the official title of the measure and its summary last month. And the campaign announced last week that signature collection began.
To qualify for the ballot next year, the campaign must collect 874,641 valid voter signatures.
Here’s our CEO, signing the first TREAT California Petition!
Sign our petition to put psychedelic drugs on the ballot. Sign our petition today! https://t.co/PXAGrZ0Ivg pic.twitter.com/Szr6ESCPly
TREAT California 6 October 2023
According to the initiative’s text, it’s intended to create a funding organization to “build all the pieces of this psychedelic eco-system necessary for this paradigm change in mental healthcare,” and the ultimate goal is to gain federal Food and Drug Administration approval and make these valuable therapeutics available to everyone.
The institute will provide funding to support research, clinical trial, training and education related to the therapeutic use of psychedelics. The agency will also help create care programs for MDMA and psilocybin in California once these psychedelics have been approved by FDA for therapeutic purposes.
The grants would support research on the benefits and risks of psychedelic assisted therapy for addiction, anxiety and depression, suicidality and post-traumatic disorder (PTSD), chronic pain, acute pain, and other disorders like obsessive-compulsive disorder and anorexia.
The California Legislative Analyst’s Office released its review of this measure last month. It estimated that the measure would cost California $6.6 billion in the next 30 year. California can also recover some of the money because TREAT Institute funding is subject to agreements on intellectual property.
However, the question of how much revenue could be generated and when is still open.
The LAO report stated that because the R&D processes can take a long time, it is unlikely the state would derive any revenue from TREAT-funded R&D in the first few years. The amount of revenue that can be derived from this method is also uncertain. R&D often does not result in new discoveries. However, some discoveries (such a new drug), can be very profitable.
Fontana, of TREAT California, said in a campaign press release that the initiative would “aid the development of FDA-approved [psychedelic-assisted therapies], which–when administered professionally–could offer meaningful pathways to the healing that people so desperately need and deserve.”
Deb Hubers told Marijuana Moment that she is confident that Californians will support the measure, if it gets to the ballot. She cited a recent national poll that showed that a majority of Americans support legalizing psychedelic assisted therapy.
Decriminalize California is a separate campaign that has been trying to qualify for the ballot next year. State officials have recently approved its initiative to legalize adult-use psilocybin. The group’s activists have attempted to place the reform on the ballot twice in previous cycles but failed due to difficulties in gathering signatures during the pandemic.
Meanwhile, Gov. Gavin Newsom recently rejected a bill that would have legalized certain psychedelics, and created a path to regulated access . He wrote in a veto letter that he wanted the legislature to send him next year a new bill establishing guidelines for therapeutic access to psychedelics.
Newsom, in a Saturday veto message, said: “Both peer reviewed science and powerful anecdotes have led me to support the new opportunities for mental health to be addressed through psychedelic medications like those that are addressed in this bill.” “Psychedelics are proven to help people with certain conditions, such as depression and PTSD. They also relieve those who have addictive personality traits. California is at the forefront of this exciting frontier.
He continued: “California must immediately start work on regulated treatment guidelines — complete with dosing instructions, therapeutic guidelines and rules to prevent exploitation during guided therapies, as well as medical clearance that there are no underlying mental disorders.” This bill would criminalize possession before these guidelines are in place. I therefore cannot sign it.
Newsom had signed a bill allowing doctors to begin prescribing certain illegal drugs, like MDMA and psilocybin, if the federal government rescheduled them .
The federal government is increasingly urging officials at all levels to examine the benefits and expand access to psychedelics in mental health. Michigan lawmakers have passed a resolution calling on the U.S. Congress and Department of Veterans Affairs HTML0 _ HTML1_ HTML3____________________
House lawmakers approved a spending measure earlier this year that included amendments aimed at veterans who use marijuana or psychedelics. The first would allow VA doctors the ability to recommend medical cannabis to veterans, while the second would encourage the research of the therapeutic potentials of psychedelics.
Three bipartisan House Members also sent a recent letter to VA Secretary Denis McDonough, expressing “deep concerns” over the recently updated VA marijuana Directive that continues to prevent its doctors from giving medical cannabis recommendations for veterans who live in states where it is legal.
Below, you can read the full title of the California Attorney General and the ballot description for the psychedelics measures:
The state agency for PSYCHEDELIC Therapy Research is created. The initiative is a constitutional amendment and statute that creates a state agency for the regulation of “psychedelic medicine” (defined as substances which “produce altered levels of consciousness”, including psilocybin LSD, MDMA, Ketamine, Cannabis). The agency must provide funding to research, develop, and deliver psychedelic therapies and medicines for the treatment of mental disorders and conditions, such as anxiety, depression, or post-traumatic disorder. The constitution establishes the “right to conduct scientific research” on psychedelic drugs. Limitation of $500 million per year on the amount of state general obligation bonds that can be issued for funding agencies. General Fund money is used to pay back bonds. Summary of the estimate of fiscal impact by Legislative analyst and Director of Finance on state and local government: State costs averaged $220 million per year over 30 years. Total costs were $6.6 billion.
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Image courtesy of Workman.
The article California campaign to put $5 billion towards psychedelic research begins gathering signatures for ballot measure first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
