Members of an Alaska House panel gave initial consideration on Tuesday to a proposal that would establish a state task force to explore how to legalize and regulate the therapeutic use of psychedelics in the state, a change supporters say is intended to prepare for eventual federal rescheduling of substances such as MDMA and psilocybin.
While the committee took no formal action on the bill, HB 228, some members used the hearing to express sharp skepticism about the need for the task force—as well as the underlying issue of psychedelic-assisted therapy itself.
Sponsor Rep. Jennie Armstrong (D) told members of the House Military and Veterans Affairs Committee that despite the measure’s subject matter potentially sounding “quite provocative, I think you’ll find this is actually a pretty staid bill.”
“We are asking to convene a task force to make policy recommendations to the next legislature in advance of the FDA medicalizing certain psychedelic medicines,” she said. “We’re not taking a position on decriminalization or medicalization [or] asking the state or the task force to do that. It has more to do with licensing and regulation.”
With MDMA and psilocybin being granted breakthrough therapy status by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
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