Veteran use of psychedelics for mental health care still up in the air

Virginia lawmakers last week decided not to advance legislation that could eventually help expand veteran access to breakthrough therapies for mental health, like psilocybin, the active compound found in psychedelic mushrooms.

Monday, Nov. 18 was the last day for lawmakers to act on legislation continued from the 2024 General Assembly session. Any bill left in a committee by that date must be reintroduced for consideration. 

The companion bills introduced by Sen. Ghazala Hashmi, D-Richmond, and Del. Michael Jones, D-Richmond, proposed the creation of an advisory council to study and recommend how breakthrough therapies could be utilized to help prevent veteran suicide. This included examining federal regulations and determining any necessary licensing and training.

Although psychedelic mushrooms are not mentioned in the bill language, they fall under the category of breakthrough therapy, according to Jones. 

Psilocybin is among the compounds that have been studied for their ability to lessen the effects of PTSD and other mental health disorders, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.

Johns Hopkins Medicine created the Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research to study the effects of psychedelics in 2019. 

Researchers found psilocybin helped smokers quit smoking, eased existential anxiety in cancer patients and reduced depressive symptoms among individuals with major depression. They are currently working on research for psilocybin’s effect on other mental health disorders. 

Veterans deserve any form of effective mental health care they need, according to Jones. His father was a Navy veteran who served two tours in Vietnam. Jones doesn’t understand why the government would want to take away any opportunity to improve mental health from those who have served the country. 

“Every day isn't easy for everybody,” Jones said. “For some people getting up on Thursday morning is hard as hell and so, how do we soften that burden?”

State lawmakers, including Hashmi, have previously attempted to expand access to medicinal psilocybin. 

In Virginia, the mushrooms would need to be reclassified from a Schedule I substance to a Schedule III to be used medicinally. Hashmi sponsored a bill in the 2023 session to reschedule psilocybin, but it died in a House committee.

Schedule I substances are “defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” Schedule III substances, such as testosterone, are “defined as drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence.”

Currently, psilocybin is classified on the same schedule as fentanyl in Virginia. Fentanyl in 2022 accounted for roughly 79% of overdoses in Virginia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. There is no data or evidence from the CDC of overdoses caused by psilocybin.

Army veteran Anthony Mijares testified in 2023 on behalf of state legislation to establish therapeutic access to psilocybin. The use of psilocybin lessened his depression and helped him to become non-dependent on pharmaceutical drugs, Mijares said. 

“My job as a combat medic was to save people on and off the field,” Mijares said. “The military trained me to do so but it failed to train me on how to heal myself.”

Wyly Gray is another veteran who testified to the panel. He told lawmakers that through the nonprofit Veterans of War, he travels to foreign countries to provide veterans with psilocybin medicine that should be available in the U.S.

The Department of Veterans Affairs announced in January it would fund research “to study the use of certain psychedelic compounds in treating post-traumatic stress disorder and depression” in collaboration with academic institutions. 

The VA’s January announcement stated that the Biden-Harris Administration is “committed to exploring all avenues that promote the health of our nation’s Veterans.” 

Jones hopes that any future administration will prioritize the mental health of veterans and support any research that advances treatment for veterans. 

Neither Jones nor Hashmi responded when asked if they would reintroduce the legislation this upcoming session.