Rep. Justin Pizzulli, R-Scioto County. (Source: Ohio House website)
In Ohio and several other states across the country, lawmakers are weighing the potential benefits of a little-known psychedelic drug called ibogaine.
Largely prompted by veterans seeking psychedelic-assisted treatment abroad, Republican lawmakers want to study its effectiveness in treating post-traumatic stress and opioid addiction.
It’s an almost unimaginable turnaround for a party that has aggressively pursued a war on drugs for decades.
“I think looking at the impact it has on veterans,” said Ohio Rep. Justin Pizzulli, R-Scioto County, “and just hearing people talk about how it helped them — stopped them from committing suicide — I think that’s a message that Republicans are very passionate about.”
Pizzulli chairs the Ibogaine Treatment Research Committee and lobbied for its creation as part of last year’s budget.
Pizzulli represents Portsmouth, which he described as “ground zero” of Ohio’s opioid crisis.
“This was the biggest crisis that has ever happened to my community in our lifetime, and we are still paying for it and recovering from it,” Pizzulli said.
“I promised my constituent that I would find alternative ways to repair and investigate issues that I believe could potentially be helpful.”
Proponents of ibogaine treatment insist that their efforts are confined to clinical treatments in controlled settings and do not open the door to recreational operate. And they point to preliminary research that shows this promising results for treatment.
Right now, several states are pooling funds and working together to develop a treatment that could pass testing with the FDA.
The White House blessed the effort and donated $50 million. Supporters who spoke Wednesday encouraged Ohioans to participate.
Still, even some lawmakers who seem open to this approach remain skeptical about the state’s role in funding the effort.
Committee testimony
Preliminary research suggests that ibogaine remodels neural pathways in the brain and supports regeneration. Scientists have already observed some effectiveness in treatment of opioid addiction AND Post-traumatic stress disorder with ibogaine, but they believe it may also have applications in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis and Parkinson’s disease.
Geoffrey Lawrence of the libertarian think tank Reason Foundation highlighted its potential in treating opioid operate disorder.
He noted that current drug-assisted treatment options, such as methadone and buprenorphine, have a low success rate, in part because they require regular dosing.
The average person goes through treatment for opioid addiction several times before achieving long-term remission.
“Ibogaine works differently,” Lawrence said. “It physically repairs brain architecture and neurotransmitter balance within days. This allows patients to move beyond physical withdrawal symptoms and gain a new lease of life.”
Logan Davidson is the legislative director of Veterans Exploring Treatment Solutions. The group finances scholarships for veterans going abroad for ibogaine treatment. He emphasized the conservative argument for expanding access to the drug.
“The legislation we have introduced does not legalize, decriminalize or expand the recreational use of any substance,” he said.
“It funds rigorous scientific research in controlled clinical settings, maintains FDA and DEA authority, requires accountability for every public dollar invested, and reflects a fundamental commitment to those who have served.”
With an average of about 17 veterans committing suicide a day, Davidson said any work at the state level to advance treatment is crucial.
“If it is possible to expedite effective treatment through this process,” he said, “you can count the number of lives saved to days shorter than this schedule.”
Who pays?
To that end, Lawrence explained that Texas recently approved an ibogaine research program with the goal of developing a drug that could undergo clinical trials.
And while Texas has proposed $100 million, split evenly between private and state dollars, that is clearly not enough.
And whether you look at it – Ohio is set to receive about $2 billion in opioid coverage funds.
Lawrence said several states are already considering proposals to allocate some of the settlement dollars to the effort. Mississippi for example he donated $5 million in March.
“Using this money to provide access to a medicine that works effectively and immediately and helps people turn their lives around may be the most impactful legacy of these funds,” Lawrence said.
However, Ohio State Sen. Steve Huffman, R-Tipp City, rejected the proposal.
“Is it the state’s job to do this?” he asked.
He noted that Ohio earmarked $5 million for pediatric cancer research in its most recent budget, but state lawmakers don’t do that often.
“Isn’t it the job of the federal government to provide this financially for the benefit of all citizens?”
Huffman also asked why private industry is not leading the charge.
Americans for Ibogaine CEO Bryan Hubbard explained that ibogaine is not patentable.
“There’s no way you can get a 6, 7, 800% return on a drug that could basically be replicated and manufactured by anyone,” he said. “The lack of patentability is a significant disincentive to the conventional Big Pharma model.”
He added that the current medication-assisted treatment system for opioid abuse is often billed through Medicaid. Hubbard said this system perfectly serves the interests of some companies.
“We would be foolish not to recognize that there is a business model rooted in the day-to-day administration of pharmacology,” he said.
Hubbard added that if ibogaine treatment proves to be as effective as its supporters expect, it could disrupt this approach to treatment.
Hubbard successfully lobbied the Trump administration to issue an executive order encouraging research into psychedelic-assisted therapies.
As part of this executive order, the president directed the Department of Health and Human Services to allocate at least $50 million for state research studies like the one announced in Texas.
Hubbard encouraged state lawmakers to join the initiative.
“I hope that steadfast Ohio, part of the working-class backbone of America, will be among the states that turn the fulcrum of history to liberate the mind, body and soul of every person who lives at the end of hope,” he said. “Ibogaine heals.”
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