Texas Further Embraces Psychedelics with Launch of Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy

Is Texas poised to become a hub for psychedelic research?

Six months after Governor Greg Abbott (R) signed a bill that requires the state to study the risks and benefits of psilocybin, MDMA, and ketamine for veterans, the Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin announced the launch of the Center for Psychedelic Research and Therapy — the first center of its kind in Texas.

Center co-lead Charles B. Nemeroff, professor and chair of Dell Med’s Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, said its “research will bring further scientific rigor and expertise to study psychedelic therapy.” Researchers will conduct clinical studies with the aim of exploring potential for psychedelic-assisted therapy to treat depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), using substances such as psilocybin, MDMA, ibogaine and ayahuasca.

Initial focus will be on military veterans living with PTSD — a population state senators were particularly interested in helping when the Texas State Senate voted to approve the previously mentioned legislation last May. The Lone Star State has the nation’s second-largest veteran population with about 1.6 million, and previous studies and testimonies demonstrating psychedelics’ abilities to heal their trauma is no doubt fueling the widely conservative state’s commitment to this progressive area of study.