A government task force in Nevada has approved a report recommending that lawmakers establish a program to regulate access to psychedelic-assisted therapy and consider lowering legal penalties for entheogenic plants and fungi.
According to Nevada’s Psychedelic Medicines Working Group report, research is increasingly indicating that treatment with substances such as psilocybin, 5-MeO-DMT, mescaline, and ibogaine may improve mental health and substance use disorders, and that other states and localities are already taking steps to research or implement their own therapeutic psychedelics programs.
“These initiatives and programs demonstrate a nationwide commitment to increasing access to psychedelic-assisted therapy for mental health treatment,” the report states, “and revising policies based on clinical research, therapeutic potential, and safety profiles.”
The psychedelic task force was established by legislation signed into law in June 2023. Initially, the proposed measure would have legalized psilocybin, promoted research into the substance, and encouraged MDMA studies.
However, it was significantly scaled back in a Senate committee to investigate the use of entheogens “in medicinal, therapeutic, and improved wellness” and develop a future plan for controlled access.
The bill defined entheogens to include psilocybin and psilocin, the two primary psychoactive components of psychedelic mushrooms, but the working group’s report also includes sections on 5-MeO-DMT, mescaline, and ibogaine.
It also calls for more research on “non-traditional psychedelics such as MDMA and ketamine.”
The report’s main takeaway is a call for legislation to establish either a pilot program or a full program allowing Nevadans access to psychedelic therapies.
“Based on its comprehensive review, the Working Group recommends a series of coordinated legislative and administrative actions to establish a safe and effective framework for psychedelic-assisted therapy in Nevada,” the 15-member body stated in a draft of the new report, which was approved at a meeting earlier this month.
A final version of the document is expected to be released shortly.
“Central to these recommendations is the development of legislation for the 2025 session to establish a regulated access program for psychedelic-assisted therapy,” according to the report.
“This program, which could be implemented either as a pilot or full-scale initiative, should include robust mechanisms for data collection and outcome analysis to inform future policy decisions.”
As part of the reform, the state legislature may need to reschedule psilocybin “and/or other therapies granted breakthrough therapy status if approved by the [U.S. Food and Drug Administration]” and should also consider revising state law “to reduce penalties for entheogenic plants and fungi.”
Meanwhile, from 2025 to 2026, state insurance officials at the Division of Insurance and Department of Business and Industry should “develop a system to ensure that a person’s health insurance will cover this mental health care,” the group said, adding that “If needed, the Division should present a bill to the 2027 Legislative Session for this authorization.”
Diane Goldstein, a retired California police lieutenant and executive director of the Law Enforcement Action Partnership (LEAP), said the report’s approval “marks an important step toward establishing a safe and regulated state system to access psychedelic-assisted therapy in Nevada.”
“The research presented to our panel demonstrates a clear need for expanded care options in our state to treat complex mental health conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), treatment-resistant depression, and substance use disorders,” Goldstein told Marijuana Moment in an email.
“After carefully weighing the benefits and risks of these substances, we are calling on the state legislature to take bold action to give all Nevadans opportunities to access these potentially life-saving and life-changing therapies.”
Another group member, Jon Dalton, president of the Nevada Coalition for Psychedelic Medicines, praised the report as “a significant step toward integrating these transformative therapies.”
“The progress in psychedelic-assisted healthcare policy in Nevada is undeniable,” Dalton told Marijuana Moment. “We look forward to continuing this important conversation in the 2025 Legislature to ensure safe and equitable access for those in need.”
Dalton, a former Navy SEAL who received psychedelic-assisted therapy in Mexico to treat anxiety and depression, told the Las Vegas Review-Journal last month that the results were “quite frankly, absolutely profound.”
“I never found peace the way that I found there,” he said, adding that he has since continued integrative therapy sessions in the United States and is better able to process his experiences.
“I was amazed that this was essentially a cure,” he told me.
Annette Magnus, a lobbyist for the Nevada Coalition for Psychedelic Medicines, told the Review-Journal that the organization hopes lawmakers will introduce two bills in the coming session: one to reduce penalties for psilocybin possession and another to authorize a psychedelic-assisted pilot program. Both bills are “still very much in the brainstorming phase,” she said.
Magnus said Sen. Rochelle Nguyen (D), who sponsored the bill that resulted in the new working group report, and Assemblymember Max Carter (D) are likely to sponsor the legislation.
Carter, for his part, told the Review-Journal that he believes psychedelic-assisted therapy could be a useful tool for treating depression and that Nevada should pursue the issue, particularly since other states are doing so.
“Unlike antidepressants that leave somebody numb, just kind of existing, it helps people rediscover purpose and rediscover the joy in life again,” he said. He further commented: “If a program is palatable and functioning in conservative Utah, we should try to make something similar work here.”
Earlier this year, a legislative panel heard testimony from an expert and members of the public regarding the therapeutic potential of substances such as psilocybin.
Law enforcement officials also expressed their concerns about legalization, but there was a notable acknowledgement that some reforms, including rescheduling, should be implemented.
Earlier this month, bipartisan lawmakers in Congress welcomed news that the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will fund a study to investigate the efficacy of MDMA-assisted therapy for veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and alcohol use disorder (AUD).
Earlier this year, Rachel Yehuda, director of mental health at VA’s James J. Peters Veterans Affairs Medical Center, praised an initial study funded by the agency that yielded “stunning and robust results” in its first-ever clinical trial into MDMA therapy.
This comes as the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) faces criticism from advocates and researchers for rejecting an application to approve MDMA-assisted therapy for PTSD based on independent research.
Just one day before the FDA declined to approve a new drug application for MDMA-assisted therapy, Yehuda said she was asked how the decision would affect the department’s own work.
She said the answer is to double down on the research. Keep generating data and cases. The nature of a challenge is, well, challenging. But I’m optimistic.
Bipartisan lawmakers held separate events at the United States Capitol calling for FDA approval of MDMA, as well as launching an art installation honoring military veterans who committed suicide.
Separately, advocates for expanding access to psychedelic-assisted therapy for American military veterans published an informational guidebook in October, claiming that it “responds to the demand for alternative treatment solutions and equips veterans with practical, clinically-backed strategies to safely explore these therapies.”
Before last month’s election, Vice President-elect JD Vance stated that he was “fascinated” by the therapeutic potential of psychedelics, asking podcaster Joe Rogan for advice on creating a possible “pathway” for providing access to substances such as MDMA and psilocybin for military veterans with serious mental health conditions.
Meanwhile, a newly formed psychedelics task force in Maryland met for the first time last month, beginning work on what will eventually become a report to lawmakers on how to reform the state’s laws on substances such as psilocybin, DMT, and mescaline.
The task force legislation advanced about two years after another law went into effect, establishing a state fund to provide “cost-free” access to psychedelics such as psilocybin, MDMA, and ketamine for military veterans suffering from PTSD and traumatic brain injury.
In Georgia, a Senate study committee recently recommended that the state set aside up to $5 million to fund research into how psychedelic substances like MDMA and psilocybin can be used to treat PTSD.
In August, the Nevada Supreme Court ruled that the state Board of Pharmacy could continue to classify marijuana as a Schedule I drug under state law, despite the fact that cannabis is legal for medical and recreational use.
State officials also recently adopted a rule change to protect athletes such as boxers and MMA fighters from being penalized for using or possessing marijuana in accordance with state law.
