President Donald Trump is expected to sign an executive order within days on ibogaine, CBS News reported Thursday, citing two sources. The order would not reschedule the psychedelic out of Schedule I of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) but aims to open federal funding for research into its effectiveness against PTSD and traumatic brain injuries, particularly in veterans. Officials are still drafting provisions; one source framed the goal as determining whether ibogaine is "snake oil" or a legitimate treatment.
Early research indicates ibogaine may help with PTSD, traumatic brain injuries, and drug addiction. Lawmakers in multiple states have passed legislation supporting clinical trials toward Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval. Texas recently announced it will launch its own ibogaine research program after failing to find a company to lead a consortium required under a bill enacted last year.
The move comes roughly four months after Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice to complete marijuana's rescheduling from Schedule I to Schedule III "in the most expeditious manner" — a process still unfinished.
Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said on the Joe Rogan Experience in February that the administration is "very anxious" to create a psychedelic therapy pathway, planning access to psilocybin and MDMA in a "very controlled setting" for patients with PTSD and depression. "Everybody in my agency…is very anxious to get a rule out there that will allow these kind of studies and will allow access under therapeutic settings, particularly [for] the military soldiers who have suffered these injuries to get access to these products," Kennedy said. "We're working through that process now. We're all working on it and trying to make it happen." Last June, Kennedy said his agency is "absolutely committed" to expanding psychedelic therapy research and aims, alongside the FDA head, to provide veterans legal access "within 12 months."
VA Secretary Doug Collins disclosed in April that an "eye-opening" talk with Kennedy left him open to government vouchers covering psychedelic therapy costs for veterans treated outside VA as Congress considers access pathways. Bipartisan lawmakers this session introduced legislation to fund $30 million annually for psychedelic-focused "centers for excellence" at VA facilities offering psilocybin, MDMA, and ibogaine. Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) has called ibogaine an "astonishing breakthrough."
Photo courtesy of Flickr/Scamperdale.
