The Department of Veterans Affairs will spend $1.5 million on a study involving veterans as test subjects who will undergo mental health therapy using psychedelic drugs to measure their effectiveness as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder. (Stars and Stripes)
WASHINGTON — The Department of Veterans Affairs will launch its first clinical study since the 1960s into the effectiveness of psychedelic drugs as a treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder, the agency said Tuesday.
The $1.5 million study will involve veterans as test subjects who will undergo psychedelic-assisted mental health therapy in a supervised setting at VA medical centers in Connecticut and Rhode Island, the VA said.
Veterans must have a dual diagnosis of PTSD and alcohol use disorder to participate, the VA said.
The study will be conducted in five years and examine the potential therapeutic benefits of using MDMA, commonly known as ecstasy, to manage the symptoms of PTSD, a mental health disorder that afflicts individuals who have witnessed terrifying events.
The VA’s decision to fund and lead the study could lead to “innovative treatment options” for addressing “complex mental health challenges faced by veterans,” said Juliana Mercer, who directs veteran advocacy and public policy at Healing Breakthrough, a non-for-profit group that advocates for MDMA-assisted therapy.
MDMA is a Schedule 1 drug under the Controlled Substances Act, which means that it is illegal under federal law.
The VA has said it is undertaking the research with prior approval from the Food and Drug Administration and the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Access to psychedelic-assisted therapy is a treatment pushed by some veterans with PTSD who have turned to treatment at medical clinics outside the U.S., where it is legal.
Navy veteran Brandon Bryan, a 42-year-old retired chief petty officer who lives in Texas, said he welcomes the study after traveling to a clinic in Mexico in 2022 for psychedelic-assisted therapy to ease depression and anxiety related to PTSD and a traumatic brain injury connected to his military service.
Bryan said he found the treatment effective after the medications that his VA doctor prescribed did not help.
“We cannot afford to ignore solutions that work simply because they challenge the status quo,” said Bryan, who served from 1999 to 2019, with deployments to Iraq and the United Arab Emirates.
For the VA study, participants will be given MDMA while undergoing talk therapy. A second control group will receive a much lower dose of the hallucinogen, which the VA described as “an active placebo.”
VA researchers will lead the clinical study at Provincetown VA Medical Center in Rhode Island and the West VA Medical Center in Connecticut.
The veterans will be constantly supervised to ensure their safety and welfare during the research, the VA said.
Including veterans with an alcohol use disorder is recognition of how common it is for veterans with a mental health condition to struggle with addiction, said Brad Burge, spokesman for Veterans Exploring Treatment Solutions, a nonprofit group that supports veterans seeking psychedelic-assisted therapy.
Substance abuse is a standard coping mechanism for veterans, he said.
Bryan said he previously had inpatient admissions for addiction treatment when he was experiencing severe symptoms from PTSD.
PTSD often causes nightmares, flashbacks and depression, among other symptoms.
Bryan said he drank heavily and abused drugs to ease his symptoms prior to receiving psychedelic-assisted treatment.
The study’s goal is to collect and analyze scientific data on the safe use of psychedelic compounds for treating mental health disorders, the VA said.
But Bryan said he hopes the research will lead to the legalization of psychedelic-assisted treatment in the U.S., including at VA hospitals and clinics.
“The VA and mental health providers must expand access to innovative treatment like psychedelic assisted therapy,” he said.
