Psyched: Oregon Legalizes Psilocybin, Washington DC Decriminalizes Psychedelics, Cybin And Entheon To Go Public
5:47 pm ET November 7, 2020 (Benzinga)
Oregon has become the first state in US history to set up a program that regulates psilocybin, the active psychedelic ingredient in “magic mushrooms.”
Measure 109 was approved by 55.8% of voters in a ballot vote on Election Day.
The measure creates a state-licensed psilocybin-assisted therapy system. Patients over the age of 21 will be allowed to buy, possess and use psilocybin under the supervision of trained facilitators, while manufacture, delivery and administration of the drug will be allowed at supervised, licensed facilities.
“Now there is a new form of hope for all Oregonians and those willing to travel to Oregon rather than places like Jamaica where psychedelic retreats are already legal,” said Mike Arnold, Founder and President of Silo Wellness, an Oregon-based company with retreat operations in Jamaica.
Field Trip Health (CSE: FTRP) (OTC: FTRPF) also announced intentions to establish therapy clinics in the Beaver State, stating that it is “in advanced stages of identifying potential sites for Field Trip Health centers to treat people in Oregon with psilocybin therapies.”
The approved legislation sets up a two-year period to develop the program and put it into action.
Oregonians also approved separate legislation, called Measure 110, which decriminalizes possession and use of all scheduled drugs including heroin, cocaine and methamphetamine.
Washington DC Decriminalizes Psychedelic Plants And Fungi
Voters in the District of Columbia have approved an initiative that aims to effectively decriminalize the use of several psychedelic substances.
Initiative 81 makes non-commercial possession, distribution, purchase and cultivation of psychedelic and hallucinogenic plants and fungi a lowest law enforcement priority for the Metropolitan Police Department.
The measure includes a non-binding call for the D.C. attorney general and U.S. attorney for DC to "cease prosecution of criminal charges involving these substances,” which are also referred to as “entheogens.”
The ballot initiative was approved by 76% of voters.
Initiative 81 does not change penalties regarding these plants, nor does it allow commercial sales.
The measure is similar to those taken by other jurisdictions like Denver; Oakland and Santa Cruz in California, and Ann Arbor, MIch., in recent years.
Cybin And Entheon Biomedical To Go Public Next Week
Two psychedelics companies announced plans to begin public listings of their stock, starting next week.
Cybin, a Toronto-based psychedelics research company, announced on Thursday it has completed a reverse take-over with Clarmin Explorations Inc.
The company’s stock will be available on the NEO exchange on November 10 under the symbol CYBN.
Last week, the company announced the closing of a private offering for CA$45 million ($34.2 million).
Cybin is currently working towards a Phase 2 clinical trial to study psilocybin use for major depressive disorder. The trial will include 120 patients taking four doses of a sublingual film containing psilocybin over a four-month period.
Entheon Biomedical also announced a go-public date on Thursday.
The company closed its reverse acquisition with MPV Exploration Inc. and announced that its stock will be available on the Canadian Securities Exchange on November 12 under the symbol ENBI.
Entheon is a psychedelic-drug development company focused on developing DMT-based medicines for substance abuse disorder. DMT, or N,N-Dimethyltryptamine, is a short-acting psychedelic molecule present in ayahuasca, an hallucinogenic beverage traditionally used by indigenous people of the Amazon basin.
MindMed Completes LSD Study
MindMed (NEO: MMED) (OTCQB: MMEDF) completed a phase 1 study on LSD. The study examined different doses of the drug in healthy individuals to understand how its effect varies between doses.
“Maximal good drug effects were reached at a 100ug dose. However, an experiential dose of 200ug LSD was shown to induce greater ego dissolution than a lesser 100ug dose,” said a press release.
Ego dissolution is believed to be one of the key elements behind the therapeutic potential of psychedelic-assisted therapy.
The company now expects to move to a Phase 2b clinical trial to assess the efficacy of LSD-assisted therapy for anxiety disorders.
© 2020 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.
