Centering Safety and the Client Experience
Dear supporter,
Last fall, the Healing Advocacy Fund convened an Oregon Safety Committee composed of researchers, manufacturers, service center operators and facilitators, all of whom are dedicated to the successful and responsible rollout of psilocybin therapy. This committee’s work has been incredibly helpful in identifying potential issues related to client and program safety in real time, while simultaneously proposing solutions to help solve these issues.
With both Oregon and Colorado being the first states in the country to establish state-regulated access models for psilocybin therapy, we take our responsibility seriously in centering client and practitioner education, communication and transparency throughout the entire process. The safety committee’s work is a big part of this commitment.
In case you missed it, please take a moment to read and sign your name in support of the Safety Committee’s first public memo highlighting some key issues regarding dosage and potency of psilocybin products.
You will hear more about this committee’s work in the near future, as we bring in experts for advice and create new resources, regulatory guidance, and community guidelines for Oregon, Colorado, and the rest of the states working towards psychedelic healing for all who stand to benefit.
COMMUNITY SPOTLIGHT
M109 Volunteer and Newly Appointed Minister Offers Psilocybin Education
Mira Kepler was a strong advocate as a volunteer on the M109 campaign, and played a vital role in helping ensure that rural Columbia county did not opt out from local access. Now, Mira is moving on to big things as a facilitator and pastor! We could not be more proud of all the incredible time and energy Mira has brought to our space and
numerous communities across the state.
Check out the story here.
Our State's New Psilocybin Industry
Listen to KLCC’s recent story about the Oregon psilocybin industry, and get a glimpse into a client’s transformational psilocybin therapy experience.
Interviewees:
Manager for OHA’s Oregon Psilocybin Services (OPS) Angela Albee,
Senior Chemist at Rose City Labs Bjorn Fritzsche,
Owner of EPIC Healing Eugene’s Cathy Rosewell Jonas, and
A recent psilocybin treatment participant, “Sarah”, who shares her moving experience.
UPDATES
Up to Date Numbers on Oregon Psilocybin Services Program Licensing
The following information has been compiled through the OHA’s Psilocybin Services website. The first psilocybin services began at the end of June 2023 and as you can see below, we are starting to see quite a number of license applications submitted in the service center and facilitator categories.
These numbers are updated on a weekly basis and are subject to change. Last updated 8/21/23.
Colorado Hosts Statewide Opioid Abatement Conference
Above: Colorado Director Tasia Poinsatte raised consideration of the psychedelic substance ibogaine during the innovation panel of the Opioid Abatement Conference to call attention to its potential as an effective treatment option for people struggling with opioid use.
In August, HAF headed to Montrose, Colorado to attend the Opioid Abatement Conference. This conference addressed the nation’s opioid addiction crisis and the distribution of millions of dollars coming to the state from settlements with pharmaceutical companies for their hand in causing the crisis. Colorado has an opportunity to explore alternative tools for addiction treatment within the framework of the Natural Medicine Health Act, including the potential use of ibogaine, a lesser-known psychedelic medicine that shows promise for treating opioid use disorder.
As in the rest of the nation, Colorado is facing both a substance use and mental health crisis, and has the distinction of having one of the least accessible mental health treatment systems in the country. Recognizing effective, research-based treatments found in the world of natural medicine will be critical to helping address both the opioid epidemic and other mental health conditions. HAF is working hard in Colorado and other states to expand access to these treatments and raise awareness of their potential.
EVENTS
Registration Open for Horizons New York and Horizons Northwest
Horizons: Perspectives on Psychedelics
New York City: October 12-15
Portland, Oregon: December 1-3
Featuring talks on Psychedelics in Science and Medicine, Psychedelics in America and in the World. Speakers to be announced throughout August and September.
> Horizons New York Information and Registration
> Horizons Northwest Information and Registration
Oregon Health Authority Listening Sessions
The Oregon Health Authority’s Oregon Psilocybin Services (OPS) section held a series of three virtual public listening sessions in July, designed by OHA to take public input on the program. That input is intended to inform future draft rules, ongoing program development, educational materials and future community engagement. The OPS document summarizing public input during the listening sessions can be found here.
RESOURCES
First Psychedelic Assisted Therapy Professional Practice Guidelines
The American Psychedelic Practitioners Program has co-published the first Professional Practice Guidelines for psychedelic-assisted therapy in conjunction with national nonprofit BrainFutures. These comprehensive guidelines are designed to address evolving practices for mental health providers practicing psychedelic-assisted therapy. The process of drafting these guidelines generated both robust debate and consensus around professional standards for this treatment modality. They describe the benchmarks of high-quality care as informed by existing clinical research and expert consensus.
IN THE NEWS
Oregon Now Offers Psilocybin Therapy. Here's what One of the First Patients Experienced.
OPB
Oregon now offers psilocybin therapy. Here’s what one of the first patients experienced.
OPB
Oregon’s new psilocybin therapy program went live in January, but it’s taken months to train new facilitators. So people are only now beginning to take hallucinogenic mushrooms under the system.
One of the first was James Carroccio, a retired small business owner. He doesn’t actually live in Oregon. He traveled here from Arizona in his RV. But he used to live in Bend and has kept a close eye on Oregon’s new system in the hope of getting help.
Fluence Announces Graduation of First Cohort of Students in Certificate in Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy
PRNewswire
Fluence, a leading psychedelic therapy training organization, today announced the graduation of the first cohort of students in its Certificate in Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy. The 9-month training program, which launched in November 2022, provides students with the knowledge and skills they need to provide psilocybin sessions under Oregon's Measure 109.
Will Health Insurance Providers Cover Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy?
Verywell Health
In the United States, some states have legalized or decriminalized some psychedelic substances and are creating safety frameworks to allow the drugs to be used as treatments for certain mental health conditions.
I Went to Rehab for Alcoholism 18 Times. Only Psychedelics Helped.
Vice News
I met Amanda at a pain therapy clinic in Zurich last December. She was sitting on a chair, hands folded neatly in her lap – she’d come here with her husband Tim for one of her regular visits to neurologist Livia Granata, one of the few specialists in Switzerland offering psychedelic therapy.
'Magic Mushroom' Drug Psilocybin Shows Early Promise in Easing Migraines
NBC
Psilocybin, the active ingredient in "magic" mushrooms, is getting renewed interest as a potential treatment for various health conditions. Now, a new research review argues that migraines should be added to that list.