John Fetterman, a senator from Pennsylvania (D), says psilocybin could be a “revolution in mental health treatments” and he believes it will bring economic benefits to his state. He called Pennsylvania the “mushroom capitol of the world”.
The senator stated that he has “been a proponent of psychedelics, especially magic mushrooms to treat PTSD in veterans.”
“I’ve always believed it could be – and maybe I’m incorrect–an amazing kind of boom in the mushroom [sector],” said he to Pietro Farms owner Chris Alonzo. “I believe it could be a revolutionary change in mental health. Are you willing to consider that?
Watch Senator discuss psychedelics at the hearing starting at 48:25 in the video below.
“We are absolutely open.” Alonzo responded, “We’re entrepreneurs but we’re also trying to create a healthy food for our community and the U.S.,” he said. “When we looked at it, mushrooms mycelium is used in products such as furniture and oil absorbing. The nutrition of mushrooms was derived from research done by [the U.S. Department of Agriculture] along with the mushroom council.
He said, “We’re open to anything that has a link with health benefits or medical benefits.” “Obviously, you must do it within parameters that are safe and responsible and secure. But we’re open.”
Fetterman has said in the past that “research into psilocybin” should be undertaken by the United States. He was previously lieutenant governor for Pennsylvania, and a strong advocate of marijuana legalization.
Open research on Psilocybin.
We are the mushroom capital.
— John Fetterman June 29th, 2021
In order to achieve this, bipartisan members of Congress recently introduced a bill which would create an $75 million federal grant program in support of research into the therapeutic benefits that psychedelics can have for certain conditions among active military servicemen.
Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-TX, is the sponsor of this legislation. He also wrote to House Appropriations Subcommittee Leaders in January to urge them to direct federal health agencies that include active duty servicemen and women in psychedelic research.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse has recently begun soliciting proposals to support a series research initiatives that aim to investigate how psychedelics can be used to treat addiction to drugs.
Nora Volkow, NIDA director, told senators at a hearing held last month that new evidence is emerging that psychedelics have “significant potential” to treat certain mental conditions. This topic is of “great interest” to researchers.
Sens. Brian Schatz, D-HI and Cory Booker, D-NJ, urged top federal officials to give an update on studies into the therapeutic potentials of psychedelics. They argued that federal prohibition had stymied research.
NIDA’s response to the question was that the federal prohibition made it harder to study the benefits of psychedelics and required researchers to jump through extra regulatory hoops. Volkow said previously that she personally does not like to study Schedule I substances due to the complications.
In 2021, the director told Marijuana Moment that researchers should prioritize psychedelics research because more people will use the substances as a result of studies showing their therapeutic potential.
In March, bipartisan members of Congress filed an updated version to streamline federal rescheduling for “breakthrough therapies such as psilocybin or MDMA to promote drug research and development.
Industry report finds that a majority of truckers support marijuana legalization and testing reform despite labor shortages
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