A new bill was introduced in Hawaii last week on Jan. 24, which aims to establish a regulatory framework for therapeutic psilocybin if passed. However, in its current form, the bill would help protect patients who choose that form of medicine, rather than fully legalize psilocybin.

Senate Bill 3019 was introduced by Sen. Chris Lee on Jan. 24, and a companion bill, House Bill 2630, was introduced on Jan. 23 by 14 representatives. “…the purpose of this Act is to ensure that people who struggle with trauma and treatment-resistant mental health ailments are not penalized by the State for the use of psilocybin for therapeutic purposes when the patient’s licensed mental health professional provides a professional recommendation that the benefits of therapeutic use of psilocybin would likely outweigh the health risks for the qualifying patient,” the bill stated.

Additionally, should any psilocybin products or paraphernalia be seized by law enforcement and a defendant proves in court that they consume legally through the program, law enforcement would be forced to return the products. However, if any patient attempts to claim they use psilocybin for therapeutic purposes to avoid arrest, they will be charged $500.

According to SB 319, the benefits of the bill would be limited to those who have a high school diploma or equivalent degree, are currently 21 years or older, must be a resident in Hawaii, and would have to undergo a “psychedelic integration training program” that has been approved by the Office of Wellness and Resilience (OWR).

Once a person qualifies, they could potentially gain access to psilocybin treatment if they suffer from any of the following conditions: “post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), treatment-resistant depression or major depressive disorder, end-of-life anxiety, existential stress, and demoralization, anorexia, bulimia, and other eating disorders, addiction, obsessive compulsive disorder.” Additionally, other mental health conditions could also qualify for psilocybin if it’s approved by the Department of Health and requested by a licensed mental health professional.

Therapy sessions would be structured in three phases. First, the preparation session, which would allow the patient to meet with a facilitator. Second, the administration session, where the patient “purchases, consumes, and experiences the effects of psilocybin” while the facilitator supervises. Finally, an integration session would be held, which would allow the facilitator to offer care for the patient and inform them about peer support and other resources that could be beneficial to them.

The OWR announced in August that the Breakthrough Therapies Task Force held its first meeting on Aug. 29, 2023. Its role is to prepare how to implement therapeutic programs that include MDMA and psilocybin. Lee is one of the members, in addition to 10 others, who are members of the task force.

Hawaiian legislators’ approach to psilocybin treatment is much different than the way similar laws have been crafted in states such as Oregon and Colorado.

The first psilocybin treatment center to be licensed and to begin operating in Oregon, EPIC Healing Eugene, had thousands of people waitlisted just three months after it opened in June 2023. An end of year report stated that by the end of 2023, more than 700 people had experienced psilocybin at treatment centers across the state.

Colorado’s psychedelics bill was passed by voters in 2022 and signed by Gov. Jared Polis in May 2023. It removed criminal penalties for possession and consumption of substances such as psilocybin, ibogaine, mescaline, and DMT. These substances can also be shared (ibogaine is the only exception), but not sold, and it permits the home cultivation of mushrooms within a 12 x 12 foot space.

In November 2023, Hawaii Attorney General Anne Lopez announced a 294-page plan to legalize adult-use cannabis. The proposal included a 4.25% excise tax on adult-use products, plus a 10% tax on surcharge. It also included a way for illegal cultivators to enter the legal industry by providing grants through a social equity program. “The most important thing we can do is we can bring the people who have been growing and selling marijuana illegally into the legal market,” Lopez said.

Medical cannabis dispensaries that have already gone through the hurdles of licensing would be among the first to sell in a recreational market. “They’re already standing up, they’re already growing, they are already prepared to go to market,” Lopez explained.

Some legislators expressed their approval of Lopez’s proposal late last year, including House Judiciary Chair David Tarnas. “The attorney general has done a really good job pulling together all of the different input and providing a comprehensive bill,” Tarnas said. Sen. Jarrett Keohokalole called it “the best version to date. And part of it is the efforts to try and address a lot of the issues that came up along the way.”

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An estimated 3,000 people are now on a waitlist for Oregon’s first legal and operating psilocybin service center. EPIC Healing Eugene opened in June but is one of many psilocybin service centers that are still working on beginning operation.

“Our services focus on deep healing work, mindfulness, empowerment, spirituality, and transformation through psilocybin facilitation and integration,” EPIC Healing Eugene states on its website. “We teach self-help strategies that support self-directed personal development and brain change. We help you prepare for a healing shift that will help you get the most out of your experiential journeys. Our skilled and supportive staff offer preparation sessions, followed by integration sessions to help you better recognize and incorporate the gems of insight from your psychedelic experiences into your daily life.”

While patients don’t need a prescription or referral in order to take advantage of EPIC Healing Eugene’s services, their insurance also won’t cover such an experience. AP News stated that the price to try this new experience can exceed more than $2,000, which covers the business cost of the service center, as well as facilitators who assist participants through their experience, and lab-tested psilocybin. However, group pricing reduces the overall price.

According to Angela Allbee, Oregon Psilocybin Services (OPS) Section Manager, patients appear to be enjoying their experiences since EPIC opened. “So far, what we’re hearing is that clients have had positive experiences,” she told AP News. Allbee also mentioned that they’ve received inquiries from across the world.

In November 2020, Oregon voters pass Measure 110 officially became the first state to decriminalize hard drugs such as heroin or methamphetamine, and also legalized the use of psilocybin mushrooms for therapeutic use. By December 2022, the state was training facilitators to care for participants experiencing their psilocybin journey.

It took until May 2023 to approve the first license, which belonged to EPIC Healing Eugene. “We want to congratulate Cathy Jonas of EPIC Healing Eugene on being the first licensed service center in the state,” Allbee said at the time. “This is such a historic moment as psilocybin services will soon become available in Oregon, and we appreciate the strong commitment to client safety and access as service center doors prepare to open.”

As of September, there are 10 licensed service centers (a few of which are not yet operational), four growers, two testing laboratories, and “dozens of facilitators,” according to AP News. 

EPIC Healing Eugene states on its website that it specifically offers macrodosing, ranging between 10 mg to 35 mg (although the state allows these service centers to offer up to 50 mg). However, the service center hopes to include microdosing in the future. Once it has been verified if participants are ready for such an experience, they must undergo two one-hour sessions (or one two-hour session) for preparation. A single psilocybin administration session takes approximately six hours. Once the session has completed, the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) requires that all forms and documentation be kept for five years. 

According to EPIC Healing Eugene owner Cathy Jonas, she’s not expecting to turn a profit anytime soon. Instead, it’s more of a calling to help others. “The plant medicines have communicated to me that I’m supposed to be doing this thing,” she told AP News. 

One of Jonas’ first clients took a 35 mg dose, which they described as “… kind of infinite-dimension fractal that just kept turning and twisting.” “It was kind of mesmerizing to watch, but it got so intense,” explained the unnamed individual. “I started to have this experience of dying and being reborn. And then I would kind of see large portions of my life going by in a very rapid way.”

Additionally, another psilocybin service center called Omnia Group Ashland opened in September in southern Oregon as well. So far, it has approximately 150 people on its waitlist. Another center in Bend, Oregon, called Lucid Cradle, is already booked through December 2023, but plans to serve one client per week.

Mushroom cultivation differs quite a bit from cannabis cultivation. One of Oregon’s licensed mushroom growers, Gared Hansen of Uptown Fungus, is the sole person cultivating psilocybin for his business. He grows mushroom varieties such as Golden Teacher, Blue Meanies, and Pink Buffalo, with an average cost of $125 for a 25 mg dose.

Hansen emphasizes the importance of purchasing mushrooms for legal sources, because mushrooms often look similar, and some may be an incorrect and poisonous variety to the untrained eye. “Sometimes part of the healing could be a negative experience someone has to go through, to kind of flush negative emotions out or reexperience some trauma in a healthier way,” said Hansen. “I’d hate to have someone that’s never tried it before take it home, have a bad trip and hurt themselves.”

According to a recent report from Willamette Weekly, Oregon Psilocybin Services have not yet yielded a groundbreaking amount of money from fees, noting that it currently costs more to run the program. “Backers of Measure 109 said the program would cost far more—$3.1 million a year—to run,” the outlet stated. “To fill at least part of that gap, Oregon lawmakers appropriated $3.1 million from the taxpayer-supported general fund for the two-year period that started July 1. OHA is betting that shroom fee revenue will pick up as the biennium proceeds, making up the rest of the shortfall,”

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Regulators in Oregon last week announced the recipient of the state’s first license for a psilocybin service center, made possible by a voter approved measure passed nearly three years ago.

The Oregon Psilocybin Services, an arm of the Oregon Health Authority, said on Friday that it had issued a license to EPIC Healing Eugene.

“We want to congratulate Cathy Jonas of EPIC Healing Eugene on being the first licensed service center in the state,” said Oregon Psilocybin Services (OPS) Section Manager Angie Allbee. “This is such a historic moment as psilocybin services will soon become available in Oregon, and we appreciate the strong commitment to client safety and access as service center doors prepare to open.”

In a statement of her own, Jonas said that the business is “excited to be the first service center licensed in Oregon and to be able to open our doors for the many clients who will benefit from our transformational psychedelic-assisted therapy in a safe and nurturing space,” as quoted by local news station KGW.

Fifty-percent of Oregon voters approved Measure 109 in 2020, which made the state in the country the first to legalize psilocybin, while 44% of voters were opposed to the proposal.

In Friday’s announcement, the Oregon Health Authority explained exactly how the new program will work, and how individuals may procure such treatment:

“Under the statewide model, clients 21 years of age or older may access psilocybin services. While they won’t need prescriptions or referrals from healthcare providers, clients must first complete a preparation session with a licensed facilitator. If they meet the criteria to move forward, they may participate in an administration session at a licensed service center, where they may consume psilocybin products in the presence of a trained and licensed facilitator. Afterwards, clients may choose to join optional integration sessions, which offer opportunities to be connected to community resources and peer support networks for additional support. Once licensed, service centers can employ and/or contract with licensed facilitators who are trained in providing preparation, administration, and integration sessions to clients. Service centers will sell psilocybin products that were produced by licensed manufacturers and tested by licensed laboratories. To date, OPS has issued three manufacturer licenses, one laboratory license, five facilitator licenses, and 84 worker permits. OPS expects to issue more licenses and worker permits in the coming months.”

Late last year, the Oregon Health Authority approved the final slate of rules and regulations for the psilocybin service centers, which included an option for microdosing and other limits on duration of sessions. 

“[Oregon Psilocybin Services] received over 200 written comments and six hours of comments shared in the public hearings during the November 2022 public comment period,” wrote Andre Ours, administrator of the Center for Health Protection, and Allbee.

“These comments helped to further refine and improve the rules, which have now been adopted as final. The final rules are a starting place for the nation’s first regulatory framework for psilocybin services, and we will continue to evaluate and evolve this work as we move into the future.”

In April, the Oregon Health Authority issued licenses for the state’s first laboratory for testing psilocybin products to Rose City Laboratories, LLC.

“We want to congratulate Rose City Laboratories, LLC on being the first licensed laboratory for testing psilocybin products from licensed manufacturers,” Allbee said at the time. “Laboratory testing ensures the safety of psilocybin products, and accurate labeling of psilocybin potency allows clients to participate in administration sessions with products that meet their needs.”

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