Oklahoma’s House of Representatives has passed a bill that would allow psychedelic-therapy research on Veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
House Bill 2107 filed by State Representative Daniel Pae would permit research facilities and academic institutions in Oklahoma to engage in studies involving the two psychoactive compounds in order to treat certain health conditions.
Pae filed the bill after learning of promising psilocybin research undertaken in other American states.
The bill, if passed by the Senate, will require investigators to establish an oversight board and the pilot study will only permit a partnership with one mushroom cultivator.
“Allowing the outstanding research facilities in our state to conduct trials on psilocybin and psilocin could lead to new information that could save the lives of Oklahoma’s Veterans,” said Pae.
Following the House’s approval of the bill, it will now move to the Senate.
Read more: Australia re-classifies MDMA and psilocybin to be prescribed as medicine
Read more: Apex Labs doses first patient in Veterans take-home psilocybin drug trial
The United States and Canada lead the psychedelic-assisted therapy industry
The news follows American states like California, Oregon and Colorado decriminalizing psilocybin and other psychedelics for medical purposes. Certain companies and organizations continue to make progress in the country through advancements in psychedelic science and successful clinical trials.
New York’s law firm Phillips Lytle LLP established a Psychedelics & Mental Health Therapies Practice last August to help address the needs of emerging biotechnology companies operating in the clinical psychedelics industry.
Numinus Wellness Inc. (TSX: NUMI) (OTCQX: NUMIF) recently established a new psychedelics research clinic in Arizona and now has a total of five clinics throughout the United States.
Read more: Colorado decriminalizes use and possession of natural psychedelics
Read more: Heroic Hearts collaborates with Maya to streamline psychedelic data for veterans
In Canada, Quebec has started to pay doctors for facilitating psilocybin-assisted therapy. Two physicians in the province received the first payments in mid-December last year.
Vancouver’s Apex Labs recently dosed its first patients in a take-home psilocybin drug trial for Veterans marking a “watershed moment for psilocybin research” according to the company’s CEO.
Heroic Hearts Project Canada is a charitable organization that has been working to remove barriers that prevent Veterans from accessing psychedelic therapies. One of the charity’s directors who served in Canada’s Royal Canadian Regiment for 14 years is also the co-founder of Apex Labs.
The first national-level trade association for the clinical psychedelics industry in the world was also established in the country with the formation of Psychedelics Canada.
Currently in Oklahoma, psilocybin is considered a Schedule I substance and is therefore illegal to possess unless authorized by government authorities. The state has been known for harsh drug laws, but in 2016 Oklahoma passed a law (SQ 780) that changed possession of psychoactive substances to a misdemeanor rather than a felony like it was formerly.
rowan@mugglehead.com
