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US collective to push for regulated access of psychedelic microdoses

The non-profit Microdosing Collective has launched to support education around regulatory policy to permit legal microdosing.

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US collective to push for regulated access psychedelic microdoses

The Microdosing Collective has stated it is committed to a world where sub-perceptible microdosing of psychedelics is legal, accessible and safe. 

With a rise in interest in the use of psychedelics microdoses – such as psilocybin – for conditions such as depression and anxiety, The Microdosing Collective will be working to promote the regulation of microdoses as over-the-counter products.

The collective suggests that one potential path forward is to regulate microdoses of psychedelics as over-the-counter wellness supplements under the purview of the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or a state-based system.

Microdosing Collective co-founder and microdosing expert, Paul Austin, commented: “Over the past few years, there have been incredible strides made to provide psychedelic substances within a legal and regulated framework.

See also  Microdosing: separating fact from fiction

“Unfortunately, none of these initiatives have created policy specific to the adult use of microdosing psychedelics. We seek to change that.”

Currently, a number of clinical studies are being carried out in the US on the benefits of psychedelics for conditions such as post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), addiction and treatment-resistant depression.

The collective highlights that most FDA-approved research studies focus on the clinical outcomes of using consciousness-altering doses of psychedelics during guided sessions, and that state-regulated models only allow access to quantities of psychedelics that dramatically shift consciousness. 

See also  Improvements in mood and mental health after psilocybin microdosing

With a lack of regulatory pathways to accessing sub-perceptible doses of psychedelics, The Microdosing Collective is seeking to create a legal pathway for microdosing psychedelics, not as a medical treatment but as a wellness supplement.

The collective has stated that it believes Americans who microdose should not have to procure their supplements through illicit market operators.

Co-founder of the non-profit and long-time drug policy attorney, Joshua Kappel, stated: “The Collective estimates at least 600,000 people in the US actively microdose psychedelic medicines. The problem we are addressing is that none of these products are legal or guaranteed to be safe.

“Our goal is to educate the public through the Microdosing Collective about the benefits of a legal microdosing market.”

Co-founder of Microdosing Collective and CEO & co-founder of Into The Multiverse, an education-first ecosystem on mushrooms, Alli Shaper, commented: “The largest barrier to access for microdosing stems from its current classification as a Schedule I drug, which legally labels psilocybin as highly addictive with no medical benefit.

“Research shows quite the opposite. When used correctly, with the right education and support, microdosing can have a massive positive impact on people’s lives. The use of these supplementation protocols is on the rise for both mental health and human optimisation with thousands of people reaping the benefits. 

“Our goal is to provide a safe and legal channel for microdosing supplements, which is really a form of harm reduction and mitigation of the risks that come from cross contamination and incorrect dosing via underground channels.”

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Policy

Now is the time for psychedelic access, says campaigner

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Now is the time for psychedelic access, says campaigner

Activists in Oakland recently filed a ballot put forward by Dave Hodges seeking to legalise safe and legal access to psychedelics for therapeutic uses. 

In the face of critics, Hodges has said now is the time for safe access to psychedelics.

The Psychedelic Wellness & Healing Initiative would enable the sale, possession and use of psychedelics for therapeutic purposes if passed. Psychedelics that would be allowed under the ballot include Psilocybin, MDMA, DMT, and Mescaline.

If passed, the initiative would give doctors and mental health specialists the right to recommend psychedelics to ease the debilitating symptoms of a range of problems, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, addiction, suicidality and traumatic brain injury (TBI), among others.

Hodges has said: “Now is the time for safe, controlled medical access for patients in need. The way to solve the problem is not by continuing to ignore it.” 

Hodges’ solution is to create a structure for use that includes proper dosages and access to experts who can help users benefit from appropriate treatment.

The updated initiative language emphasises safety, and gives doctors and mental health specialists the right to recommend psychedelics to ease the debilitating symptoms of a range of conditions.

Research by the University of Michigan and Columbia University shows non-LSD hallucinogenic use on the rise and Hodges has stated that increase means that the initiative providing guidelines for use is needed more than ever. 

Hodges said he hopes Californians will read the initiative, share their thoughts about it over the holiday week and offer feedback via the initiative website, PW4CA.com, by 27 November, 2023, the deadline for modifications.

“Now is the time to provide medical and therapeutic access to psychedelics,” Hodges said. “The way to do this is through the initiative.”

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Policy

Transform Drugs releases groundbreaking book: How to regulate psychedelics

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Transform Drugs releases book: How to regulate psychedelics

UK charity Transform Drug Policy Foundation has published a new book ‘How to Regulate Psychedelics: A Practical Guide’ that sets out how psychedelics can be legalised and regulated for non-medical adult use.

While an increasing amount of research is pointing to the potentially beneficial effects of psychedelic treatment on mental health conditions, many people across the globe are using psychedelics outside of the clinical setting.

The book includes a set of proposals for post-prohibition policies, covering psychedelics including psilocybin, LSD, DMT and Mescaline. 

Previously, Transform’s guides on regulating stimulants and cannabis have been used to advise governments around the world on drug policy. This book seeks to inform the debates on psychedelic drug reforms taking place across the world.

Co-author and Public Affairs and Policy Manager at Transform Drug Policy Foundation, Ester Kincová, stated: “Despite psychedelic drugs being illegal, their non-medical use within society has been steadily increasing. 

“Punitive enforcement has not decreased use or eliminated supply, but it has made use more unsafe. 

“Legalising and regulating psychedelics is a pragmatic move to reduce harm. This is no longer a theoretical debate, states in the US are already recognising the need and  making moves to regulate for non-medical adult use.”

Scientific Chair of Drug Science, Professor David Nutt, added: “Once again Transform have come up with a well thought out and practical plan for the regulation of another group of currently illegal drugs – in this case psychedelics. 

“Their ideas would be both easy to implement and to engage with and will, if adopted, radically enhance the safe use of these remarkable agents.”

Proposals for regulation

The book includes a four-tiered regulation model “that attempts to manage the variety of psychedelic preparations and the different ways in which they are used”.

These include:

  • Private use, home cultivation, foraging and not-for-profit sharing.
  • Membership-based non-for-profit associations for plant-based products.
  • Licensed production and retail adaptable to different products and environments
  • Regulated commercial guided or supervised use

Additionally, a decriminalisation model is proposed which suggests that possession for personal use should no longer be an offence of any kind or be subject to any sanctions; Drugs for personal use should not be confiscated; cultivation of small amounts of plant-based drugs for personal use should be decriminalised, among other suggestions.

The book also includes topics such as embedding social justice, equity and human rights into policy design, how to think about psychedelics regulation, why regulate psychedelics and why now, and psychedelics and the UN drug treaties.

To read the book, please visit transformdrugs.org/.

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Policy

Oakland ballot seeks to legalise medical psychedelics

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Oakland ballot seeks to legalise medical psychedelics

Activists in Oakland have filed a ballot that seeks to legalise safe and legal access to psychedelics for therapeutic uses. 

The Psychedelic Wellness & Healing Initiative would enable the sale, possession and use of psychedelics for therapeutic purposes if passed. Psychedelics that would be allowed under the ballot include Psilocybin, MDMA, DMT, and Mescaline.

If passed, the initiative would give doctors and mental health specialists the right to recommend psychedelics to ease the debilitating symptoms of a range of problems, including obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, anxiety, addiction, suicidality and traumatic brain injury (TBI), among others.

See also  Australia reschedules psilocybin and MDMA

Additionally, it would create a statewide framework for regulating the possession, use, cultivation and production of substances for medical and therapeutic use.

The initiative has been introduced by proponent and founder of the Oakland-based Church of Ambrosia, Dave Hodges, to the California Attorney General’s office for the 2024 ballot, and will need 546,651 valid signatures to qualify.

See also  CDPRG discusses the UK's Reschedule Psilocybin campaign

The filing follows California Governor Gavin Newsom’s recent veto of Senate Bill 58, the bill that sought to decriminalise the use of certain psychedelic drugs. 

Hodges emphasised that SB58 would have been a step forward, but that it had major flaws concerning its lack of provisions to ensure access, public safety and quality control. That veto, Hodges said, compelled him to move quickly on the initiative filing.

When the California Attorney General certifies the initiative for circulation, backers will have about four and a half months to gather the required signatures for ballot placement. 

Signature collecting will begin in early December.

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