Senate Bill 1555 would create a regulatory framework for limited, legal access to therapeutic psilocybin services provided at state-licensed “therapy centers” (clinics).
- The Arizona Department of Health Services will develop rules, regulations, and licensure requirements for therapy centers and health professionals, as well as guidelines for psilocybin cultivation, testing, and transport.
- Administration of psilocybin may take place only on the premises of a licensed facility; patients may never take psilocybin products home.
- A counseling session from licensed professionals is required before consumers can schedule a subsequent appointment to be administered psilocybin.
- SB1555 does not legalize or decriminalize psilocybin and would retain current prohibitions on the possession, manufacturing, and sale of other psychedelic compounds.
- Similar programs have already been established or approved in Colorado, Oregon, and Utah.
Promise of psilocybin-assisted therapy
- Over the past decade, the medical and mental health communities have increasingly recognized the potential of psychedelic therapies for the treatment of intractable mental health conditions like addiction, anxiety, depression, PTSD, and other disorders.
- Psychedelics are demonstrating the potential to be more effective than conventional drugs now being used to treat a range of mental health disorders.
- Legal and logistical barriers to innovation persist even as the range of potential uses for psychedelic substances has expanded.
- In 2018 and 2019, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration granted a “breakthrough therapy” designation to psilocybin-based treatment for major depressive disorder and severe treatment-resistant depression, and 14 active FDA Phase II or Phase III clinical trials are underway today.
- Psilocybin has low physiological toxicity, low risk of abuse or addiction, safe psychological reactions, and no linked persistent harmful physiological or psychological effects during or after use, according to thousands of years of anecdotal data as well as contemporary scientific investigations.
- A 2024 article in the academic journal Brain Sciences reviewed a dozen high-quality studies on the therapeutic effects of psilocybin administration, concluding: “[…] A quantitative analysis of the studies indicates that psilocybin is highly effective in reducing depressive symptoms severity among patients with primary [Major Depressive Disorder] or [Treatment Resistant Depression]. Both single-dose and two-dose psilocybin treatments significantly reduced depressive symptoms severity, with two-dose administration sometimes yielding more pronounced and lasting effects.”
- A 2024 meta-analysis published in the medical journal BMJ found that “psilocybin use showed a significant benefit on change in depression scores compared with placebo […] consistent with other recent meta-analyses and trials of psilocybin as a standalone treatment for depression or in combination with psychological support.”
Takeaway
SB1555 creates a regulated, limited program to access psilocybin, which has shown tremendous promise in the therapeutic treatment of a range of neurological and mental health conditions, with minimal risk to both public safety and public health.
Full Backgrounder: Regulating legal psilocybin access in Arizona would benefit mental health