Arizona Governor signs budget deal that includes $5 million for psilocybin research grants

The Governor of Arizona signed into law a budget bill that included provisions to fund medical research on the potential of psilocybin mushroom for a number of conditions.

Gov. Katie Hobbs, a Democrat, gave the final approval of the appropriations package on Thursday just hours after the legislation passed.

In February, lawmakers introduced a standalone bill that was unanimously approved by a House committee. However, they agreed to attach its provisions to the budget agreement, although at a lesser funding level.

The governor has signed two bills to implement the proposal: one bill that provides funding of $5 million for psilocybin-related research, and another bill that details the requirements for clinical trials supported by these dollars.

In a press statement, Rep. Kevin Payne, the primary sponsor of this legislation, stated that “The GOP has often been a fighter for medical freedom. We have opposed FDA overregulation, and pushed for ‘Right to Try’ laws.” Arizonans, and especially veterans, deserve alternative prescriptions to addictive and dangerous drugs. This bill will help.”

Yesterday I signed into law a bipartisan federal budget. It’s not perfect but it’s a step in the right direction to make housing more affordable and build more roads, bridges, and broadband access. It’s also a good way to expand children’s insurance and invest in our public schools. I’m glad… pic.twitter.com/Ii46FqaKoI

— Governor Katie Hobbs (@GovernorHobbs) May 12, 2023

The committee approved a measure that included funding of $30 million over three years.

According to the budget legislation, the Department of Health Services of the State (DHS) is distributing $5 million in fiscal year 2023-2024, for “whole-mushroom psilocybin Phase One, Phase Two, and Stage Three Clinical Trials that can be approved” by FDA for treatment of any of the thirteen listed conditions.

Among these conditions are post-traumatic disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, COVID long symptoms, and substance abuse disorder.

Grant money will be given to researchers who have used psilocybin in their trials with the approval of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration. These researchers include veterans, first responders and health care workers, as well as people from underserved areas.

The bill would not legalize psilocybin as lawmakers in other states aim to do, but those who receive grant money and work on clinical trials will explicitly be protected from prosecution.

The DHS will establish a “Psilocybin Advisory Council,” which is tasked with creating eligibility criteria for grant applicants, overseeing application submissions and recommending “psychedelic-assisted therapies based on federal and state policy.”

The council must include the DHS Director, a doctor with a federal license for studying psychedelics and military veterans, law enforcement officials, and professors or researchers from Arizona-based universities.

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This session, a number of lawmakers from across the U.S. are pursuing reforms relating to psychedelics. They have focused on measures that promote research and therapeutic uses.

The Connecticut House of Representatives, for example, approved on Wednesday a law to decriminalize the possession of psilocybin mushroom and sent it to the Senate.

On Tuesday, the governor of Washington State approved a bill to encourage research on psilocybin. The pilot program will provide access to psychedelics for mental health treatments.

Vermont legislators held a hearing in a Vermont committee this month. Members discussed legislation that would legalize psilocybin, and took first steps towards providing regulated access.

A California bill to legalize possession of certain psychoactive substances and facilitate their use is headed to the Senate Floor under an accelerated process which allows it to bypass further committee consideration.

The Minnesota House passed a health omnibus bill recently that includes provisions for the creation of a psychedelics Task Force to prepare Minnesota for possible legalization.

A bipartisan group and a Republican North Carolina legislator filed a bill last month to create a grant program of $5 million to support research on the potential therapeutic benefits of psilocybin, and to create a Breakthrough Therapies Research Advisory Board.

Last month, a Nevada Senate Committee approved a revised version of a bill that would establish a new group to study psychedelics as well as develop a plan for regulated access to therapeutic purposes.

Last month, the Hawaii Senate passed a bill to create a council that would examine possible regulations to allow access to federal “breakthrough therapy” such as psilocybin or MDMA.

Oregon regulators approved for the first time in the country, a license to operate a service center that will allow people to experience the psychedelic drug under supervised conditions.

Nora Volkow, director of the National Institute on Drug Abuse, told senators in a statement last week that new evidence is surfacing that psychoedelics have “significant potential” to be used as therapeutic treatments for some mental health conditions. This topic, she said, is “of great interest” to researchers.

Based on a statistical model of policy trends, an analysis published last year in the American Medical Association journal concluded that most states will legalize psychedelics before 2037.

A national survey published in March revealed that a majority of U.S. citizens support the legalization of psychedelic therapy, and are also in favor decriminalizing substances such as psilocybin or MDMA.