Psychedelics 2.0

By the mid 2010s, psychedelics became a new front in debates over drug policy. Most psychedelic substances, including LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin, have been Schedule I since 1970, which imposed major barriers to scientific research through security requirements, FDA approval, and expensive DEA licensing fees. The FDA's 1989 creation of the Pilot Drug Evaluation Staff eased communication between scientists and the administration. Dr. Richard Strassman successfully launched a research protocol involving DMT and psilocybin, defending his work by arguing that hallucinogens produce a multifaceted clinical syndrome.

Study at a glance

Abstract

This chapter focuses on psychedelics as another emerging front in the war over the war on drugs in the mid 2010s, with most psychedelic substances, such as LSD, mescaline, and psilocybin, being Schedule I listed since 1970. It explains how the scheduling imposed significant barriers to scientific research on hallucinogenic substances and their effects, through stringent security requirements, FDA approval, and expensive DEA licensing fees for institutions working with the drugs. It also recounts the creation of the Pilot Drug Evaluation Staff by the FDA in 1989, which made it easier for the scientific community to liaise with the administration. The chapter refers to Dr. Richard Strassman, who managed to get a research protocol involving DMT and psilocybin off the ground. It details how Strassman defended his work by arguing that hallucinogens elicit a multifaceted clinical syndrome.