STAT+: Trump’s boosting of psychedelics, cannabis signal a new era in GOP drug policy
Get the Health newsletter
Daily health & science — research, biotech, public health, the studies worth knowing. Free.
- Trump signed an executive order allocating $50 million to fast‑track FDA approval of psychedelics for mental‑health treatment.
- Trump directed the DEA to downgrade medical marijuana from Schedule I and urged a similar downgrade for recreational use.
- Kevin Sabet called the administration’s drug‑policy pivot a travesty, warning that the marijuana industry is becoming the new Big Tobacco.
Why it matters: Pharma firms and psychedelic startups gain $50 million in federal funding and faster FDA pathways, while anti‑legalization groups lose influence; the policy shift accelerates market entry of mind‑altering drugs, reshaping treatment standards and political debates.
