The Psychedelics Year in Review (2021)
Psychedelics developments in 2021 covered everything from legalization and decriminalization to pharmaceutical advances and public company milestones.
New York Introduces Medical Psilocybin Legislation
On Monday, November 13, 2021, New York Assemblyman Pat Burke introduced medical psilocybin legislation. The “purpose or general idea of bill” provides a good summary: this legislation would “create psilocybin service centers to provide innovative treatment options for ailments such as PTSD, depression, alcohol dependency, anxiety, among others.” The bill echoes two separate pieces of
Is Psilocybin Really a Miracle Drug? Compass Pathways Releases Phase 2B Trial Results
Something strange happened yesterday. Psychedelics unicorn Compass Pathways released data for the largest clinical trial ever conducted of a psilocybin drug. Not only did the drug seem to work, but the heavily anticipated data were “breathtaking” in the words of Compass’ CEO. Immediately, the company’s publicly traded shares dropped 16%. Including the day prior, it
BREAKING: City of Seattle Decriminalizes Psychedelics
In a continuing trend across the country whereby cities are taking steps to decriminalize the possession of certain amounts of all kinds of psychedelics, Seattle joined the herd this week by voting to formalize the non-prosecution of the possession of certain entheogens, commonly known as psychedelics. We were especially gratified to see the results of
Harvard Law Announces Psychedelics Law Research Initiative, Led by Harris Sliwoski Attorney Mason Marks
Yesterday, on June 30, the Petrie-Flom Center at Harvard Law School announced the launch of a three-year research initiative, the Project on Psychedelics Law and Regulation (POPLAR). The initiative will be led by Harris Sliwoski attorney Mason Marks, who also serves on the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board. As we’ve covered extensively on this blog, the
USPTO Grants Trademark for PSILOCYBIN, But Don’t Get Too Worked Up Yet
A few weeks back, Twitter was abuzz about the fact that the United State Patent and Trademark Office (“USPTO”) granted a federal trademark registration for the word PSILOCYBIN. The mark was registered by the company Black Pandas LLC and applies to the following services in Class 041: “Development and dissemination of education materials of others
FDA Approves Drug Trial for Psilocybin (Magic Mushrooms)
Let’s talk about psilocybin today. Psilocybin is the naturally occurring, psychedelic ingredient found in around 200 species of mushrooms. Like cannabis, it is believed that psilocybin use by humans predates recorded history by at least a few thousand years. Also like cannabis, psilocybin has always been thought to have medical applications; and it has demonstrated