President Donald Trump signed an executive order to expedite research and access to psychedelics used outside the US to treat posttraumatic stress disorder.“Today’s order will ensure that people suffering from debilitating symptoms might finally have a chance to reclaim their lives and lead a happier life,” Trump said in an Oval Office ceremony Saturday.The order directs the US Food and Drug Administration to issue new guidance to researchers on ibogaine, a psychedelic compound extracted from the iboga plant in Africa that’s used to treat depression, anxiety and PTSD for military veterans. The hallucinogen is considered a Schedule I controlled substance and is prohibited for use in the US.While the order doesn’t reclassify the drug for medical use, Trump urged the health professionals arrayed behind him at the event to reclassify it quickly. “These treatments are currently in the advanced stages of clinical trials to ensure that they’re both safe and effective for the American patient,” Trump said. His directive calls for a $50 million federal research investment into ibogaine, and opens an opportunity for terminally ill, or “desperately” ill, patients to try the drug under the Right to Try law passed during his first term.BLOOMBERG
