US President Donald Trump on Saturday signed an executive order intended to speed up access to medical research and treatment based on psychedelic drugs.
The order instructs the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to expedite review of drugs such as ibogaine, a drug that US military veteran groups have said can help treat post-traumatic stress disorder. At an event in the Oval Office, US federal officials said that the reforms would pave the way for the drugs, which can cause hallucinations and are largely illegal, to be reclassified after successful clinical trials. Trump also said the US would dedicate $50 million to federal research into ibogaine.
Flanked by US military veterans such as Marcus Luttrell and Rep. Morgan Luttrell, a Texas Republican, and with podcaster Joe Rogan standing directly behind him, Trump said that ibogaine had come to his attention partly through the efforts of Rogan, who devoted an episode of his show to advocates for the drug's use in treating veterans.
Officials on Saturday said there is now enough scientific evidence to justify the potential use of ibogaine as a mental health treatment.
"I've been hearing about it a little bit over the last year," Trump said. "I never heard anything about it in the past. It was almost like, taboo. It's not taboo anymore."
Trump has often signed executive orders where legislation with a more durable legal impact has failed. In December, Trump signed an executive order backing research into marijuana and cannabidiol, also substances classified as illegal.
The December order instructed the US attorney general to move ahead with reclassifying marijuana, a decision that would represent one of the most significant federal changes to marijuana policy in decades. The Justice Department's Drug Enforcement Administration has not yet reclassified the drug.
During Saturday’s signing ceremony, Morgan Luttrell said he and others had unsuccessfully tried to pass legislation in Congress. In a statement after the signing, Luttrell and Rep. Michael McCaul, a Texas Republican who formerly chaired the House Foreign Affairs Committee, said they would also push for legislation on ibogaine.
"We will continue working in Congress to build on the president's leadership and expand access to this life-saving treatment," the two said. "Our veterans answered the call for us. Now we must deliver for them."
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has championed the idea of using drugs such as ibogaine as an alternative treatment for mental health conditions such as depression.
U.S. Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Marty Makary on Saturday said that decisions on the drugs could come as soon as this summer.