State psychedelics legalization and policy roundup — December 2024

This post is part of an ongoing series summarizing state-based psychedelic reforms intended for policy professional professionals.

State rescheduling in focus

States may play a critical role next year if President-elect Donald Trump’s appointees follow through with some of the statements they made while on the campaign trail. In September, Secretary of Health and Human Services Nominee Robert Kennedy Jr. pledged to “deschedule ibogaine and all psychedelic medicine.”

Even if Kennedy managed to enact such a sweeping reform, many states still independently classify drugs on their own lists of restricted substances and would have to pass legislation if they wanted to mirror revised federal rules. 

Massachusetts loss

Massachusetts Question 4, a voter initiative that would have decriminalized personal possession and cultivation of psychedelics, lost with only 42 percent of voters casting a yes vote. Its defeat marks the first voter initiative proposing to decriminalize or regulate psychedelics that has lost since advocates began running these sorts of initiatives in Oregon back in 2020. 

The sheer scope of the loss may complicate how philanthropists support future efforts. The ballot raised $7 million, which was more than the same proponents spent on a successful Colorado initiative.

Missouri agency seeks to fund psilocybin 

The Missouri Department of Health is seeking guidance in preparation to award contracts for $5 million from the state’s opioid settlement funds to study how psilocybin can treat opioid dependence. 

Advocates seek changes in Oregon

The Oregon Healing Advocacy Fund plans to support legislation to update the state’s current market of professional psilocybin services. The proposed reforms are not yet part of a submitted bill. Among the proposed reforms are:

• A license to allow certified mental health providers to treat clients with psilocybin. Currently, the law only allows non-medical adult use, which means that licensed practitioners cannot technically conduct therapy during a psychedelic session, even if they happen to have both a license to serve psilocybin and be a therapist.

• Adding more people from the business community to the state’s psilocybin advisory board. Many of the current board members come from public health but may not have experience with how laws impact small businesses. 

New Hampshire rejects reform 

New Hampshire lawmakers have rejected state Rep. Kevin Verville’s (R-Rockingham).  latest legislative effort, House Bill 1693, to allow medical psychedelicsA statement from the House Health, Human Services and Elderly Affairs Committee noted that “The Veterans Administration and Massachusetts General Hospital are currently conducting research for a number of disorders using these drugs, and the FDA has granted breakthrough therapy designation for some psychedelics. We recommend future legislation to permit patients access to clinical trials and other therapy without the need to cross state lines for care.”

New Jersey reforms advances

In New Jersey, Senate Bill 2283, sponsored by state Senate President Nicholas Scutari (D-District 22), was approved by the Senate Budget Committee after having previously been approved by the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. As originally introduced, the bill would have legalized the personal possession of psilocybin, but it has since been amended to create only a regulated facilitated access model for psilocybin services like Oregon’s psilocybin market. The proposal may soon be scheduled for a Senate floor hearing. Meanwhile, a companion bill in the lower chamber was approved by the Assembly Health Committee in June but has not been scheduled for a subsequent hearing.

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