After abandoning its initial scheduling proposal last year the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), is taking another attempt at to ban two psychedelics, provoking a new fight with researchers who claim that these compounds have therapeutic potential.
In a notice published in the Federal Register on Wednesday, DEA again proposed placing 2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodoamphetamine (DOI) and 2,5-dimethoxy-4-chloroamphetamine (DOC) in Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
The agency stated that it has the same scientific and medical base for proposing a ban as last year. It is therefore making the identical argument, that phenethylamines have a high abuse potential but no known medical benefit. The new notice seems to have changed the administrative process for requesting an hearing to challenge the facts or laws that govern the scheduling action.
DEA stated that when it retracted its previous notice it would “publish a new proposal rule using a modified procedure.”
DEA does not explain why it was necessary to amend the procedure, but scientists did rally last year and request a hearing regarding its DOI-and-DOC scheduling proposal. Panacea Plant Sciences, a psychedelics research company, had filed a motion to contest the policy change. An administrative judge could have scheduled a hearing.
This latest filing states that, unlike the previous notice , the “decision on whether a hearing is needed to address these matters of law and fact in the rulemaking process will be made be the Administrator.” It has been suspected that DEA complicates the process to make it more difficult for parties outside the agency to challenge the proposal.
Panacea Plant Sciences has again raised the alarm. David Heldreth, the CEO and founder of Panacea Plant Sciences, told Marijuana Moment Friday that “the response to our rallying call to fight the DEA’s illogical rules making has been incredible.”
He said, “The psychedelic communities from researchers and lawyers to activists in the community and individuals have come together to oppose the DEA prohibition mentality.” “Panacea has had contact with at minimum 10 groups who want to support or be involved in the legal battle against the DEA’s attempt to criminalize DOI, DOC and other psychedelic compounds. These compounds are important for researchers and scientific studies of the brain and body.
Just sent this info to @calyxlaw and others a few minutes ago. We will challenge this action via a hearing request & if needed, an appeal court challenge. Who is up for the fight? https://t.co/18kSQM4NXQ
PanaceaPlantSciences December 14, 2020
Separately, the DEA backed off a proposal last year to ban five tryptamine psychedelics after a large pushback by the research and advocacy community.
The DOI and DOC notices lack evidence directly linking the compounds with serious adverse health effects or demonstrating a high potential for abuse.
It states that “to date, there have been no reports of distressing reactions or deaths associated with DOI” in the medical literature. The scientific and medical literature does not report on the physiological dependency liability of DOI or DOC for animals and humans.
DEA stated that online reports indicated that these substances had hallucinogenic properties, which made it “reasonable” to assume that DOI or DOC could be a hazard for the health and safety of users and the community.
The report did mention one death that was attributed to DOC combined with two unspecified other drugs, as well as two hospitalizations attributed to DOC and other drugs. But scientists argue that this is not enough of a reason to put them on the most restricted schedule.
On Wednesday, DEA also posted a separate Federal Register announcement announcing it was explicitly classifying other psychedelics, known as BUTINACA a-PiHP, and 3-MMC, in Schedule I of CSA. The DEA said that the substances were already classified as Schedule I due to their “positional isomers”, so they are simply listing them individually.
The DEA will also be looking to increase domestic production of cannabinoids and delta-9 THC for research purposes in the coming year. It will also maintain high levels of psychedelics due to growing scientific interest.
A federal appellate panel denied a motion filed by attorneys for a Washington State physician who was trying to reschedule psilocybin in accordance with the CSA. A three-judge panel of U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, rejected the doctor’s motion for a rehearing of a previous court decision which returned the matter back to DEA.
DEA is separately warning Georgia pharmacies about dispensing THC as it is illegal. This is because THC remains a Schedule I substance after Georgia became the first state in the U.S. that allowed pharmacies to offer medical marijuana. Nearly 120 facilities applied to sell cannabis oil.
The administrative actions taken by the DEA are unsettling for marijuana advocates who await the results of the DEA’s review of the scheduling of marijuana following recommendations from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to move cannabis to Schedule III. The proposed ban on psychedelics has no direct impact on the marijuana review. However, the arguments that the DEA uses to justify its prohibition of marijuana are similar.
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Image courtesy of Wikipedia.
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