Voters Expand Access To Psychedelic Medicine
Colorado Voters Pass Natural Medicine Health Act.
By a nearly 8-point margin, Colorado voters approved Proposition 122, which, as The Denver Post explains:
“The measure [allows] psilocybin and psilocin … for use in therapeutic settings and paves the way for the establishment of ‘healing centers’ where adults 21 years old and up can use the substances under the supervision of licensed professionals … [and] decriminalizes the personal growing, use and sharing of [psilocybin and other natural medicines].”
Governor Polis “Excited About The Medical Opportunities.” The Denver Post reported that the Governor praised the measure, saying “there is a lot of promise that natural medicines show for post-traumatic stress disorder, for depression — studies out of Johns Hopkins and others [demonstrate] — and we want to make that available … anything we can do to help those with PTSD.”
A “Tremendously Historic Moment.” Kevin Matthews, a spokesperson for the campaign supporting the measure, told Colorado Public Radio that the measure’s passage means “these medicines [will be] accessible to as many people in Colorado who could possibly benefit, and especially for those who are suffering from things like major depression, extreme anxiety, PTSD, end-of-life distress, and other ailments.”
“A Major Step Forward For The Psychedelic Renaissance.” The success of Proposition 122 in Colorado has broader national significance. For Time Magazine, Tara Law wrote that Colorado’s measure reflects a national “re-emergence of interest in psychedelics among scientific researchers, investors, and the general population” and that “in the next few years, experts expect the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to consider, for the first time, the potential mental-health benefits of MDMA and psilocybin…”
Most Oregonians Will Have Access To Psilocybin-Assisted Treatment Where They Live.
Colorado is the second state to authorize access to psilocybin treatment. In 2021, Oregon became the first state to do so when voters passed Measure 109 by an eleven-point margin. The measure gave local governments the power to refer an opt-out question to their voters, which if approved, would mean that psilocybin access would not be available in their local jurisdiction.
The Pre-Election Landscape: Before anyone voted in this election, 10 counties and 137 cities had already approved local access to psilocybin-assisted treatment, outpacing the most optimistic estimates of the measure’s backers. Even more rural and conservative areas, such as Yamhill County, decided to allow access within their borders.
The Post-Election Landscape: On Election Day, voters in a number of localities, including two of the most populous areas in the state—Deschutes and Jackson Counties—rejected opt-out measures. When the dust settled, it became clear that more than 2.5 million Oregonians will have access to psilocybin treatment in the city or county where they live.
Why Local Access Matters: Armand LeComte, a combat veteran from Oregon, put it best, “Traveling to another city in Oregon to get effective treatment might seem like a minor inconvenience, but it’s not. For people struggling to get out of bed everyday, driving to Portland might as well be flying to the Philippines—neither trip is going to happen.” There is hope for more local access in the future. The most common sentiment expressed in city council and county commission hearings in places that chose to opt-out was not hostility towards psilocybin treatment, but rather the desire to “wait and see” how regulated treatment works in other parts of the state before deciding whether to welcome it locally.
Three Places To Watch Next Year:
California. A bill to decriminalize small, personal-use amounts of such psychedelic substances such as psilocybin passed the California Senate last session before an arcane committee process robbed the bill of a floor vote in the Assembly. As the Sacramento Bee explained, the legislation had “support from both major political parties” and the bill’s sponsor, Senator Scott Weiner, “vow[ed] to reintroduce the bill next year… with the hopes that the path laid over the past two years in the Legislature will lead to its enactment.”
Maine. A medical psilocybin bill passed the Maine Senate this year, but was stymied in the House. Senator Donna Bailey, who introduced the measure, vowed to reintroduce it next session: “The bill will certainly be back next session, or, if the legislature continues to refuse to act, perhaps in a peoples’ referendum … People who are suffering need help now.”
New Jersey. Senate President, Nicholas P. Scutari, recently introduced the “Psilocybin Behavioral Health Access and Services,” which “authorizes production and use of psilocybin to promote health and wellness; decriminalizes, and expunges past offenses involving, psilocybin production, possession, use, and distribution.” The powerful labor union, United Food and Commercial Workers Local 360, quickly backed the bill, echoing the need for “safe, legal, and affordable psilocybin service centers” and noting that the “move towards psilocybin legalization is nationwide, as more states and municipalities start to recognize the benefits it can bring.” Last year, Governor Phil Murphy signed into law a bill that decreased penalties for possessing small amounts of psilocybin-containing mushrooms.
