by Alexander Lekhtman Filter
Pennsylvania lawmakers are pushing legislation that support research on psilocybin mushroom for mental health treatment. The bill is part of a nationwide wave of policy reforms involving psilocybin.
In 2021, Representative Jennifer O’Mara and Senator Tracy Pennycuick introduced the House Bill 1959. The bill was designed to fund psilocybin studies that are regulated by a state health department and institutional review boards. The money would also have been used to support production by approved entities. The bill did not include language that would have legalized or decriminalized psilocybin.
The bill never passed the House Health Committee. In 2022, the same legislators amended the bill and reintroduced in , removing the provisions for authorized psilocybin producers. Pennycuick will reintroduce a bill that includes some changes following the September 26th session of the legislature. In a discussion in The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette with O’Mara, it was revealed that she expected House Health Committee Majority Chair Rep. Dan Frankel to continue to support the bill. Others are hopeful.
Filter reported that Pittsburgh-based Dr. Sa’ed Al-Olimat is a cofounder of the Psychedelic Pharmacists Association. “I think there’s a great deal of bipartisan support” for this movement, he said. “I am optimistic. I lobbied…this legislation up and down the hallways of the Capitol Building, and there were many representatives who expressed interest and support.”
In previous versions of this bill, the state department of health would “evaluate”, the benefits of psilocybin for mental health conditions. The institution review board will have the authority to allocate funding to certain studies, but must prioritize studies that involve military veterans and retired first-responders.
Researchers who are “approved” can conduct studies on conditions such as PTSD, depression or anxiety, substance abuse disorder, or traumatic brain injury.
In the meantime, the health department will report to legislators on progress in psilocybin-related research and release a final report by a certain date. The department would have to examine the results of decriminalization or legalization of psilocybin in other states across the country. The committee would then issue recommendations on how to regulate psilocybin treatments.
Pennycuick is an Air Force veteran who has suffered from PTSD since an accident trapped in a burning helicopter. She said she wants to access psilocybin treatment and hopes to become “patient number 1”. O’Mara’s spouse is also a vet living with PTSD.
Advocates are pushing for similar legislation in North Carolina. Other states, including Maryland Connecticut Washington, and Texas, have also considered or passed bills that allow psychedelic therapy and research to benefit veterans.
Each day, approximately 17 veterans die by suicide. Veterans, and especially veteran women, are at a higher risk of suicide than the general public.
Al-Olimat stated that “we just need more choices.” “And if it is an option, then we shouldn’t allow the stigma of the 1960s and 1970s or the War on Drugs to prevent us from exploring something that can help people achieve lasting relief.”
This article was first published by Filter. A magazine online that covers drug use, drug policies, and human rights from a harm-reduction perspective. Subscribe to Filter’s newsletter or follow them on Facebook and Twitter.
Psilocybin is associated with’significantly’ reduced symptoms of major depression after one dose, American Medical Association study finds
Photo courtesy Wikimedia/Mushroom Observer.
The post Pennsylvania Lawmakers will Renew Push for Psilocybin research With an Upcoming Bill first appeared on Marijuana Moment.
