The Arizona Psilocybin Research Advisory Council is meeting for the first-time on Tuesday. It will begin the process of awarding millions of dollars to to support research into the therapeutic benefits of psychedelic mushroom.
The council, which was created under the Arizona Department of Health Services in May as part of a large-scale budget bill that the Governor signed, is meeting about one month before officials are planning to open a grant application period.
The legislature has appropriated $5 million for psilocybin research, focused on clinical trials that are meant to identify therapeutic applications that could receive federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval for the treatment of 13 listed conditions–including post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, long COVID symptoms and substance misuse disorder.
John Garcia, the program director of the Arizona Biomedical Research Centre under ADHS, stated in a notice sent last week that the division intends to start soliciting grant proposals in about one month.
He said that any clinical trials funded under this announcement or subsequent grant solicitation will prioritize the following: the use of whole mushroom psilocybin, cultivated under a Schedule I research license issued by the United States Drug Enforcement Administration, and the use of veterans, first responders and frontline health workers as research subjects.
The council will discuss at its Tuesday meeting the timeline for grant applications approvals, scope of services in psilocybin trials, and administrative issues such as filling vacant positions on advisory committees.
According to Garcia’s notice, the function of the advisory council is “to establish criteria for clinical trials that are eligible to receive research grant; oversee and review the application process; assist the director to select the most credible trials to award research grants and to ensure that all meetings of the advisory council are open to public participation and testimony; and to ensure that the meetings will be held in public to allow public input.”
By February 1, 2024, a group of peer reviewers will evaluate grant applications. They must then submit their recommendations to council.
The council includes an ADHS official as well as a representative from the Maricopa County Attorney’s Office, an Army veteran, and an academic researcher. The council must still appoint a doctor registered with the Drug Enforcement Administration to study Schedule I drugs.
ABRC stated that funding is provided via a competitive grant program to accelerate promising research towards clinical testing and breakthroughs aimed at improving the health of Arizonans. While ABRC places a strong emphasis on funding basic and translated research projects in order to generate preliminary data for the projects, ABRC is still looking for innovative projects that utilize all of Arizona’s available resources and strengthen collaboration.
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This year, a number of lawmakers and activists from across the U.S. pursued psychedelics legislation. They focused on measures that focused on research and therapeutic uses.
In Minnesota, for example, the psychedelics taskforce , which is responsible for studying the medical benefits and preparing Minnesota for possible legalization, held its first meeting in this month. At the meeting, members chose a chairperson, and outlined the course of the next few months.
The Governor of Massachusetts has recently introduced a bill that would create a working group on psychedelics to investigate and make recommendations regarding the potential therapeutic benefits for veterans of substances such as psilocybin or MDMA.
In May, Washington State Governor signed a bill that promotes research on psilocybin. The pilot program will allow therapeutic access to psychedelic to treat mental illness.
The National Institutes of Health is seeking proposals for developing psychedelics as treatments for substance abuse disorder (SUD).
This month, House lawmakers held the first ever congressional hearing on psychedelics. Both lawmakers and witnesses focused on how substances such as psilocybin or MDMA could aid in therapy for veterans with mental health issues.
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Image by Kristie Gianpulos.
The post Arizona Psilocybin Council to Hold First Meeting this Week as Officials Prepare to Distribute $5 million In Research Grants first appeared on Marijuana moment.
