Florida lawmakers introduced a bill in the state legislature proposing to study
psychedelic substances as “alternative therapies to treat mental health” and legalize access to psilocybin on Friday.
Sen. Lauren Book (D) introduced SB 348 in the Senate, while Rep. Michael Grieco (D) presented a similar version of the bill, HB 193, in the state House. If passed, the state Department of Health would evaluate “the therapeutic efficacy of alternative therapies, including the use of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, psilocybin, and ketamine, in treating mental health and other medical conditions” depression, anxiety, PTSD, and migraines — similar to the recently adopted Texas psychedelic research legislation.
“This is one of the rare times it would be ok to Texas our Florida since the Lone Star State is one of many who embrace the FDA’s breakthrough designation for alternate mental health therapies such as psilocybin,” Rep. Grieco writes to Truffle Report in an email response.
“This bill will send our state in the right direction, especially amongst our veterans, for patients who are resistant to traditional mental health therapies,” he adds.
The Department of Health, in collaboration with the Board of Medicine in the state, would determine the efficacy of alternative treatments and submit their recommendations report by September 1, 2023.
“Psilocybin treatment is a safe alternative for those who have exhausted all other avenues for mental health and wellbeing, and I am proud to sponsor legislation to ensure Floridians have medical access to this life-saving natural treatment,” says Sen. Book in a press release.
Earlier this year, Rep. Grieco introduced a bill for using psilocybin to treat mental health issues, which was shot down in the Professions and Public Health Subcommittee in April. The previous bill for legal access to psilocybin was modelled on Oregon’s Measure 109.
“After authoring a very ambitious 59-page bill last year, one that started a broader conversation, I am ready to work with both my Republican and Democratic colleagues to create a framework designed to help those patients who need it,” Rep. Grieco reiterated in his press releases.
