In the ongoing battle to enable access to psilocybin assisted therapy, a significant effort is focused on moving it off Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act, which severely restricts its use to research purposes only.
In February 2022, we collaborated with Dr. Aggarwal to petition the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to reschedule psilocybin to Schedule II, aiming to facilitate therapeutic access for patients grappling with anxiety and depression in life-threatening circumstances.
The DEA initially denied the petition. In response, the National Psychedelics Association (NPA) took action by filing a lawsuit in federal court challenging the denial as improper.
In October 2023, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that the DEA’s rejection of our petition was improper, and remanded the Petition for proper handling.
This ruling marks a crucial step toward improving access to psilocybin for those in need of its therapeutic benefits. We continue to work with DEA, and the other involved federal agencies, to move the rescheduling forward.
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