Massachusetts citizens are voting on whether residents can legalize access to psilocybin, a psychedelic compound, through licensed providers. The Legalization and Regulation of Psychedelic Substances Initiative—Ballot Question 4—would create a regulated framework for legal, professionally facilitated psychedelic services and therapy.
This statewide ballot initiative would guide regulators in licensing professional facilitators and overseeing the manufacture and sale of psychedelic substances. It would also remove criminal penalties for individuals growing or possessing approved psychedelics for personal, spiritual, and mental health use.
Critics argue that while psilocybin does show great promise, the ballot initiative is not restrictive enough. Psychedelic sessions “are not required to be run by medical professionals. As a result, the centers are not able to provide critical medical care individuals need during severe adverse reactions”, argues a document from The Coalition for Safer Communities, the ballot opposition group. However, critics alleging threats to public safety have ignored the available evidence from places where psychedelics are already legal.
Oregon and Colorado have already passed similar ballot measures. Vivian Anderson, an 88-year-old woman with PTSD who underwent legal psilocybin treatment in Oregon, shared her experience recently, saying, “I’m just happy now that my daily life feels so whole, feels so peaceful and calm. I’m not carrying around this horrible feeling of anxiety.”
Over 3,000 people have been given treatment in Oregon since legalization. The Oregon Health Authority reports that emergency services have only been needed four times since the program began (Reason Foundation independently verified these statistics with an Oregon Health Authority representative.) A Reason Foundation examination found that in Colorado, crime and hospitalization data in the year following legalization did not show widespread drug misuse. Hallucinogens accounted for only 0.3% of drug-related hospitalizations and were a more common cause of hospitalization before legalization.
These statistics are generally in line with larger surveys of therapeutic and ceremonial psychedelic use. In one study that followed psychedelic users before and after a psilocybin experience, only 0.4% sought medical care.
Eighteen percent of adults in Massachusetts report having been diagnosed with depression, according to a 2020 report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Traditional treatments aren’t sufficient for many, leaving a significant portion of the population struggling without effective relief. Psilocybin, a naturally occurring psychedelic substance, has shown extraordinary promise in treating severe depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), and addiction to alcohol or cigarettes.
If left up to the federal government alone, Massachusetts may not have legal access to psychedelics for many years. Ballot Question 4 would legalize access to these revolutionary treatments. Bay Staters deserve to determine their own mental healthcare rules and be given the option to access these promising treatments.