Missouri lawmakers held a hearing on Wednesday to discuss possible solutions to the military veterans’ mental health and suicide crisis, with several people testifying about the possible therapeutic potential of psychedelics for the at-risk population.
The House Interim Committee on Veterans Mental Health and Suicide, chaired by Rep. Dave Griffith (D), heard from a medical professional and people with personal experience using entheogenic substances for therapeutic treatment. This marked the second meeting of the interim panel.
While members touched on a number of veterans-related issues, advocates were encouraged to see the psychedelics conversation advance, especially as one GOP lawmaker prepares to pre-file a revised version of a bill for the upcoming session that would allow patients with serious illnesses to access to currently banned natural medicines like psilocybin.
Rep. Tony Lovasco (R) introduced a psychedelics reform bill for the 2022 session. It was addressed during a hearing in the House Health and Mental Health Policy Committee in March, but it did not advance.
That’s despite the fact that Chairman Mike Stephens (R) said at the time that his experience as a former pharmacist gave him perspective on the dangers of many prescription drugs and that lawmakers “can’t close our eyes”
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