If (and hopefully when) psychedelics like psilocybin and MDMA are re-scheduled by the federal government, California will immediately allow state doctors to start prescribing these psychedelic medicines.
California Governor Gavin Newsom has signed bill AB 1021, a piece of legislation that allows California health professionals to legally prescribe and dispense any Schedule I drug that is re-scheduled under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
Some language from the bill:
“Notwithstanding any other law, if a substance listed in Schedule I of Section 11054 is excluded from Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act and placed on a schedule of the act other than Schedule I, or if a product composed of one of these substances is approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration and either placed on a schedule of the act other than Schedule I, or exempted from one or more provisions of the act, so as to permit a physician, pharmacist, or other authorized healing arts licensee acting within their scope of practice, to prescribe, furnish, or dispense that product, the physician, pharmacist, or other authorized healing arts licensee who prescribes, furnishes, or dispenses that product in accordance with federal law shall be deemed to be in compliance with state law governing those acts…”
Translation: if the feds move it from Schedule 1 then state doctors can immediately start prescribing it.
Actually, the bill does not specify psychedelics, so it will allow any Schedule 1 substance — from heroin to peyote — to be prescribed by California doctors if rescheduled federally.
With FDA approval of MDMA probably coming soon, and with psilocybin likely coming next, this law will allow California doctors to quickly prescribe these medicines to patients in need.
Next. We’ll keep an eye out for how Gov. Newsom handles the comprehensive psychedelic legalization bill that might hit his desk in the very near future.
