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Colorado Voters Approve Psychedelics Legalization Ballot Initiative
By Kyle Jaeger
November 9, 2022
Colorado voters approved an initiative on the ballot to legalize possession of certain psychedelics and create psilocybin “healing centers” on Tuesday.
More than four years after Denver became the first U.S. city to decriminalize so-called magic mushrooms, setting off a national reform movement, the state has now legalized low-level possession of a variety of psychedelics while following Oregon’s lead in authorizing licensed facilities to administer supervised psilocybin services.
Here’s what the Natural Medicine Health Act initiative will accomplish:
Possession, use, cultivation and sharing of psilocybin, ibogaine, mescaline (not derived from peyote), DMT and psilocyn will be legalized for adults 21 and older, without an explicit possession limit. There will be no recreational sales component.
The Department of Regulatory Agencies will be responsible for developing rules for a therapeutic psychedelics program where adults 21 and older can visit a licensed healing center to receive treatment under the guidance of a trained facilitator.
There will be a two-tiered regulatory model, where only psilocybin and psilocyn will be permitted for therapeutic use at licensed healing centers until June 2026. After that point, regulators can decide whether to also permit regulated therapeutic use of DMT, ibogaine and mescaline.
A new 15-member Natural Medicine Advisory Board will be responsible for making recommendations on adding substances to the program, and the Department of Regulatory Agencies could then authorize those recommended additions.
The advisory board’s membership will specifically include people who have experience with psychedelic medicine in a scientific and religious context.
People who have completed their sentence for a conviction related to an offense made legal under the act will be able to petition the courts for record sealing. If there’s no objection from the district attorney, the court will need to automatically clear that record.
“This is a truly historic moment. Colorado voters saw the benefit of regulated access to natural medicines, including psilocybin, so people with PTSD, terminal illness, depression, anxiety and other mental health issues can heal,” measure’s co-proponents Kevin Matthews and Veronica Lightening Horse Perez said in a press release. “We look forward to working with the regulatory and medical experts and other stakeholders to implement this new law.”
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read more:
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/colorado-voters-approve-psychedelics-legalization-ballot-initiative/