A congressman said on Wednesday that he intends to help bring the psychedelics reform movement to Capitol Hill \u201cthis year.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), a longstanding champion of marijuana reform in Congress, made the comments at a symposium on psychedelics policy that was hosted by Harvard Law School\u2019s newly established research institute, the Project on Psychedelics Law and Regulation (POPLAR)<\/a>.<\/p>\n He touted moves by voters in his home state of Oregon to legalize psilocybin for therapeutic use<\/a> and more broadly decriminalize possession of currently illicit drugs during last year\u2019s election as examples of a growing movement that\u2019s enacting reforms beyond just cannabis. Blumenauer said he plans to bring that reform push to Congress next.<\/p>\n “I plan on bringing this movement to Capitol Hill this year,” @repblumenauer<\/a> says. The federal government needs to catch up to where the rest of America is. #POPLAR<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Petrie-Flom Center (@PetrieFlom) October 6, 2021<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n \u201cI promise you I will do my part\u2014not only assisting in the evolution of the Oregon [psilocybin] program, but I plan on bringing this movement to Capitol Hill this year in the same way we developed the foundation for the support of our cannabis work,\u201d he told attendees at the psychedelics symposium. \u201cI want to introduce the results of our work in Oregon and around the country, and I would like your center to be able to help raise awareness on Capitol Hill at this critical time in drug reform to help the federal government catch up to where the rest of America is.\u201d<\/p>\n Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) was among the first lawmakers to raise the psychedelics issue in Congress, twice filing an amendment to large-scale spending legislation that was meant to promote research into substances like psilocybin and MDMA.<\/p>\n Both times, a significant number of Democrats joined Republicans in defeating the proposal\u2014though the margin slimmed in the last vote earlier this year<\/a> compared to 2019<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI think this is truly the opportunity of a lifetime,\u201d Blumenauer said<\/a> on Wednesday, \u201cand I look forward to working with you to make it a reality.\u201d<\/p>\n He also said that there\u2019s research into the therapeutic benefits of psilocybin that \u201cgoes back decades.\u201d However, he stressed that \u201cwe need more and better research first and foremost.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThere are real life examples of people we know [who] have experienced [the benefits], but it needs more scientific rigor,\u201d he said. \u201cOur advantage is that the American public is ahead of the legislature and other policymakers. They are demonstrating their interest and their support\u201d in reform.<\/p>\n \u201cI think this is a major equity issue,\u201d he said of ongoing criminalization. \u201cOne of the challenges we\u2019ve had with our failed war on drugs\u2014and its misapplication\u2014is how it\u2019s negatively impacted minorities and marginalized groups.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd I want to stress that I think it\u2019s very important to respect traditional and sacred use of psychedelics by indigenous communities. Native Americans must not be an afterthought,\u201d he continued. \u201cThey have much to teach us, and we have much to respect in that tradition.\u201d<\/p>\n The congressman didn\u2019t offer specific details about what potential psychedelics-related legislation he plans to pursue in the coming months, but his remarks demonstrate how a localized movement has rapidly spread and reached the congressional level.<\/p>\n Denver became the first U.S. city to decriminalize psilocybin in 2019<\/a>, and now sitting members of Congress are taking seriously psychedelics reform.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not limited to Democrats like Blumenauer or Ocasio-Cortez, either.<\/p>\n Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) recently attempted to insert into defense spending legislation an amendment to require the Department of Defense to conduct a clinical trial into the therapeutic benefits of psychedelics for military members with chronic pain and PTSD. But it was\u00a0blocked from receiving a floor vote by the House Rules Committee<\/a>.<\/p>\n Crenshaw, a veteran himself, also recently moderated\u00a0a conversation with a top psychedelics reform advocate<\/a>. The congressman said that a veteran\u2019s account of psychedelics therapy with MDMA \u201csounds amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n Meanwhile, an official with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) recently said at a congressional hearing that the agency is \u201cvery closely\u201d following research into the potential therapeutic benefits of psychedelics<\/a> like MDMA for military veterans.<\/p>\n A House committee said in a report attached to spending legislation earlier this year that federal health agencies should pursue research into the therapeutic potential of psychedelics<\/a>\u00a0for military veterans suffering from a host of mental health conditions.<\/p>\n During joint hearings before House and Senate Veterans Affairs Committees in March, three veterans service organizations submitted written testimony backing a policy change to expand access to or increase research on medical cannabis, and one argued in favor of loosening restrictions to enable veterans to\u00a0utilize psychedelics in their mental health treatment<\/a>.<\/p>\n A federal commission tasked with developing recommendations to improve mental health treatment for military veterans determined in a report early last year that Congress and the executive branch\u00a0should promote research into the therapeutic potential<\/a>\u00a0of marijuana and psychedelics such as psilocybin mushrooms and MDMA.<\/p>\n The use of psychedelics among young adults is generally rising,\u00a0a recent federal analysis found<\/a>. And the head of the National Institute on Drug Abuse told Marijuana Moment that she believes the increased media attention to studies showing the medical value of such substances may be a contributing factor.<\/p>\n California Sen. Scott Wiener (D), who is sponsoring a bill to legalize possession of psychedelics<\/a>, also spoke at Wednesday\u2019s Harvard event, as did advocates with the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies and Psychedelic Science Funders Collaborative.<\/p>\n Bipartisan Pennsylvania Lawmakers Team Up On Marijuana Legalization Bill As Push For Reform In The State Heats Up<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n Photo elements courtesy of carlosemmaskype<\/a> and Apollo<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n The post Congressman Says He\u2019ll Bring The Psychedelics Reform Movement To Capitol Hill \u2018This Year\u2019<\/a> appeared first on Marijuana Moment<\/a>.<\/p>\n
A congressman said on Wednesday that he intends to help bring the psychedelics reform movement to Capitol Hill \u201cthis year.\u201d Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), a longstanding champion of marijuana reform in Congress, made the comments at a symposium on psychedelics policy that was hosted by Harvard Law School\u2019s newly establishedContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":458,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[18,81],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50350"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/458"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=50350"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50350\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":50351,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/50350\/revisions\/50351"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=50350"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=50350"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=50350"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nRead More: Congressman Says He\u2019ll Bring The Psychedelics Reform Movement To Capitol Hill \u2018This Year\u2019<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"