House endorses working group to study psychedelic-assisted therapy, asks report by November 2024

The House agreed to the human services committee's recommendation and favorably reported S.114, which establishes a temporary Psychedelic Therapy Advisory Working Group to review existing research on psychedelic-assisted therapies and recommend potential legislative actions.The working group is charged with reviewing efficacy and safety research, examining cost-benefit studies, soliciting expert testimony (including from institutions such as the Johns Hopkins Center for Psychedelic and Consciousness Research), and reviewing other states’ experiences. The Department of Mental Health is directed to convene the group's first meeting no later than July 15, 2024; the group must submit a comprehensive report to key committees by Nov. 15, 2024 and will dissolve by Jan. 1, 2025.The House Appropriations Committee described the fiscal impact as de minimis, primarily per diems, because many members would participate in an official capacity and not receive per diems. Floor amendments added an expert currently providing ketamine therapy at a Vermont hospital and added the Vermont Psychological Association to assist with facilitation and staffing, following department requests for additional support. The House ordered third reading and advanced the bill.