WASHINGTON (PNN) - May 26, 2018 - Fascist Police States of Amerika President Donald Trump has championed the right for terminally ill patients to try medications that have not been fully approved by the Amerikan Gestapo Food and Drug Administration division. Legislation to enact this was recently approved by Congress and put on the president’s desk, but it may allow patients to use MDMA and psychedelics in the future.
The House approved the Right to Try Act earlier this week by a 250-169 margin, following the Senate that passed it last year by unanimous consent. This follows thirty-nine states that have chosen to enact similar laws at the lower levels. The Congress has now followed suit, and the president is expected to sign the bill.
“Amerikans shouldn’t have to ask the government for permission to try to save their own lives,” said Darcy Olsen, president of the Goldwater Institute that has pushed Right to Try at the state level for years. “They should be able to work with their doctors directly to decide what potentially life-saving treatments they are willing to try. This is exactly what Right to Try does.”
But there could be an unexpected consequence of this bill: deathly-ill patients may use MDMA, better known as ecstasy, and psychedelic drugs including psilocybin mushrooms to treat certain ailments.
In order for a drug to meet the requirements of the new program, it must meet the following standards:
“(2) the term ‘eligible investigational drug’ means an investigational drug (as such term is used in section 561)—
(A) for which a Phase 1 clinical trial has been completed;
(B) that has not been approved or licensed for any use under section 505 of this Act or section 351 of the Public Health Service Act;
(C) (i) for which an application has been filed under section 505(b) of this Act or section 351(a) of the Public Health Service Act; or
(ii) that is under investigation in a clinical trial that—
(I) is intended to form the primary basis of a claim of effectiveness in support of approval or licensure under section 505 of this Act or section 351 of the Public Health Service Act; and
(II) is the subject of an active investigational new drug application under section 505(i) of this Act or section 351(a)(3) of the Public Health Service Act, as applicable; and
(D) the active development or production of which is ongoing and has not been discontinued by the manufacturer or placed on clinical hold under section 505(i)”
Tom Angell of Marijuana Moment explained in a blog that because MDMA and psilocybin are undergoing clinical tests at the federal level right now, they could potentially be used by patients who apply under the Right to Try Act.
“MDMA, commonly known as “ecstasy,” and psilocybin, the active ingredient in psychedelic mushrooms, have undergone Phase 1 and 2 clinical trials, with Phase 3 research on the way,” Angell said.
But he notes that this would only apply to people who have conditions deemed terminal by a licensed physician and who have exhausted all legal treatment options. Still, advocates are optimistic. The Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) funds these clinical studies and it feels that the Right to Try Act could help remove the stigma surrounding psychedelic drugs.
“It seems passing Right to Try would grant people facing death across the country tremendous relief by allowing access to MDMA-therapy and psilocybin-therapy,” said Natalie Lyla Ginsberg, who serves as policy and advocacy director for MAPS. “Both forms of psychedelic therapy have been specifically researched as a treatment for anxiety associated with life-threatening illnesses, and have produced incredibly promising results, both for the patients and for their families and loved ones. We are hopeful Right to Try would inspire hospice centers to start integrating psychedelic therapy into their treatments.”
While President Trump has been frequently criticized by drug policy reformers for choosing marijuana foe Jeff Sessions as his Attorney General, he may - perhaps unwittingly - be cutting at the heart of the federal war of drugs by signing the Right to Try Act.
“We also believe that patients with terminal conditions - terminal illness - should have access to experimental treatment immediately that could potentially save their lives,” Trump said. “People who are terminally ill should not have to go from country to country to seek a cure. I want to give them a chance right here at home. It is time for the Congress to give these wonderful, incredible Amerikans the right to try.”