The Alaska Senate Labor and Commerce Committee is seen on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024, during a hearing on Senate Bill 166, by Sen. Forrest Dunbar, D-Anchorage. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon)
As the federal Food and Drug Administration considers whether to approve the use of psychedelics in mental health treatment, a group of Alaska legislators is asking the state to prepare for what happens if the federal government begins allowing the wider use of MDMA, psilocybin mushrooms and similar medicines.
Senate Bill 166 , heard Monday in the Senate Labor and Commerce Committee, and House Bill 228 , which will be heard in the House Military and Veterans Committee next week, would create a state task force charged with writing rules for Alaska’s use of psychedelics.
“This bill does not legalize anything. Rather, it creates a problem-solving task force in anticipation of federal legalization,” said Sen. Forrest Dunbar, D-Anchorage and the prime sponsor of SB 166.
Psychedelics, with few exceptions, are among the drugs most highly restricted by the Drug Enforcement Agency, which says they have “no currently accepted medical use” and a high potential for abuse. If the FDA accepts their medical use, DEA restrictions will automatically be relaxed, forcing the state to consider how they can be used here.