Psychedelic Week for November 27, 2022
The varieties of psychedelic law, comments to the Oregon Health Authority, psilocybin data collection plans, and upcoming events
I hope you’re having a restful weekend.
With the Thanksgiving holiday, it was a slow week for psychedelic policy, news, and events. But there has been some activity.
I make the artwork for Psychedelic Week using artificial intelligence from Dall-E 2. This week’s image is the AI’s interpretation of “a map of the United States with psychedelic plants.” I chose the image to represent the diversity of psychedelic laws cropping up in cities and states across the country, which is the subject of my new academic article.
The Varieties of Psychedelic Law
On Friday, I posted my latest article The Varieties of Psychedelic Law, which will appear in a special issue of Neuropharmacology published with the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Last year, I participated in a speaker series on psilocybin hosted by the NIH, which inspired the special issue. The article creates a typology of current psychedelic laws, which fall into five general categories: decriminalization, supported adult use, medical use, clinical research, and policy analysis. I define each category and explain how some states blend categories to create hybrid legislation. I also explain how government agencies can shift a law from one category to another during the rule making process.
Psilocybin Rules: My Comments to the Oregon Health Authority
Speaking of the rule making process, yesterday, I published my recommendations to the Oregon Health Authority regarding its rules for implementing Measure 109, the Oregon Psilocybin Services Act. The agency received public comments this month and will publish final rules by December 31. In my comments, I urge the agency to revise rules regarding client confidentiality, product labeling, microdosing, client support persons, intoxicants, license fees, community use, consumption limits, and video recording.
Oregon Psilocybin Emails Show Secret Data Collection Plans
Last Sunday, I published Oregon Psilocybin Emails Show Secret Data Collection Plans. The article offers an exclusive look at the OPEN Project, a secretive plan to collect data from all participants in Oregon’s psilocybin services program. Emails obtained through a public records request reveal behind-the-scenes collaboration between officials of the Oregon Health Authority, lobbyists from the Healing Advocacy Fund, and members of the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board.
Upcoming Events
This Wednesday at 7pm Pacific/10pm Eastern, I’ll join the Portland Psychedelic Society for Post-Election Roundtable: Oregon’s Changing Legal Landscape for Psychedelics. Guests include Jon Dennis and Victoria Litman.
On December 7, I’ll moderate a panel on Comparing Legal Approaches to Accessing Psychedelics, at the Project on Psychedelics Law and Regulation (POPLAR) at the Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School (registration link coming soon). Speakers include Allison Hoots, Holly Fernandez Lynch, and Brett Waters.
On December 13, I’ll discuss my views on Current Trends in Psychedelic Law and Regulation with the Yale Psychedelic Science Group (YPSG) at the Yale School of Medicine Department of Psychiatry (registration link coming soon). In the meantime, you can watch my 2017 presentation at the YPSG, Legal Barriers to Research on Schedule I Controlled Substances.
*The views expressed on Psychedelic Week do not represent the views of POPLAR at the Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School or the Florida State University College of Law. Psychedelic Week is an independent project unaffiliated with these programs and institutions.
Mason Marks, MD, JD is the Florida Bar Health Law Section Professor at the Florida State University College of Law. He is the senior fellow and project lead of the Project on Psychedelics Law and Regulation (POPLAR) at the Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School and an affiliated fellow at the Information Society Project at Yale Law School. Marks teaches constitutional law, administrative law, drug law, and psychedelic law, . Before moving to Florida, he served on the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board where he chaired its Licensing Subcommittee. Marks has drafted drug policies for state and local lawmakers. His forthcoming book on psychedelic law and politics will be published by Yale University Press. He tweets at @MasonMarksMD and @PsychedelicWeek.