Assemblywoman Rochelle Nguyen speaks during a transportation panel discussion at Motional Tuesday, May 31, 2022.
Saturday, March 11, 2023 | 2 a.m.
Nevada politics
A bill introduced in the Nevada Senate this week would decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms and MDMA for the purpose of studying their effects on an array of behavioral health disorders.
State Sens. Rochelle Nguyen, D-Las Vegas, and Fabian Donate, D-Las Vegas, on Thursday introduced Senate Bill 242. The legislation would allow the Nevada Department of Health and Human Services to begin accepting applications from research institutions to use the drugs to treat conditions such as post-traumatic stress disorder, depression, anxiety and addiction.
Both MDMA, a stimulant also known as ecstasy, and psilocybin, the intoxicating compound found in psychedelic mushrooms, were granted “breakthrough” status by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration between 2017 and 2018, allowing researchers to study the substances without fear of breaking the law.
Since then, several advocacy groups, including veterans health organizations, have touted the drugs as effective in treating certain mental health disorders.
The bill cites preliminary clinical evidence published by the FDA that shows psilocybin and MDMA “demonstrate substantial improvement” over other FDA-approved therapies.
Under the bill, researchers could send applications to the state Department of Health and Human Services for studies on people 18 and older.
Possession, use, consumption, cultivation, manufacturing, harvesting, handling, transporting and administering MDMA and psilocybin would become decriminalized for approved participants in the trials. Individuals would also be allowed to carry up to four ounces of psilocybin-producing fungus.
Last year, the Department of Veterans Affairs launched clinical trials to study the effectiveness of the drugs to treat military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, substance abuse disorders and other mental health conditions.
Nguyen told the Las Vegas Weekly in October that she used decriminalization measures passed in Oregon as a case study in crafting S.B. 242. Oregon in 2020 became the first and only state to fully legalize psilocybin.
Also in October, Nevada State Democratic Party spokesman Gordon Brown said the conference was calling for “the legalization, regulation and taxation of therapeutic and recreational psychedelics, as well as the broad decriminalization of drugs.”
Democrats control both chamber of the Nevada Legislature, with a 13-8 majority in the Senate and a 28-14 supermajority in the Assembly.
If passed, the bill would go to Republican Gov. Joe Lombardo’s desk. A U.S. Army veteran, Lombardo has said he will not comment on any bills until they reach his desk.
