Massachusetts Should Legalize Psychedelics To Support Veterans Struggling With Mental Health Issues, Lawmakers Say (Op-Ed)

“Mental health is worsening across the board, existing treatments are insufficient for many and delaying action comes at a heavy price.”

By U.S. Rep. Seth Moulton (D-MA) and Massachusetts Rep. Shirley Arrigia (D), via CommonWealth Beacon

Election Day is the centerpiece of American Democracy, and this Election Day, the voters of Massachusetts can do something to help support the veterans whose sacrifices have made every American Election Day possible by voting yes on Question 4.

For too many veterans, the mental and emotional cost of their sacrifices is threatening to overwhelm them, even more than what they may face in combat, and even after they return home. Many people who’ve accessed the existing options feel trapped in an endless loop of suffering. They are taking a daily cocktail of pharmaceuticals and are participating in therapy without finding relief. Question 4 offers compassion and hope.

Passage of Question 4 would create a framework for therapeutic (not commercial) use of certain natural psychedelics, such as psilocybin, which is found in mushrooms, allowing veterans and others to legally access an alternative method of treatment that has shown enormous potential to treat post-traumatic stress, depression and other mental health ailments.

For American servicemembers, the need for better mental health treatment is dire. More than 6,000 veterans die by suicide each year. These heroes are crying out for help, for new options to treat their mental health needs.

Question 4 was proposed with this in mind. Mental health is worsening across the board, existing treatments are insufficient for many and delaying action comes at a heavy price. The ballot measure is also intended to bring regulation in line with what’s already happening in Massachusetts.

ENDORSEMENT ALERT! Congressman @SethMoulton endorsed Question 4 this morning in an OpEd written alongside State Rep. @ShirleyChicopee for @CWBeacon. These leaders know that “Question 4 offers compassion and hope.”

Read the OpEd here: https://t.co/spEKDnMP5z pic.twitter.com/KBuQgRpknB

— Yes on Question 4 | Hope & Healing (@Yes4MA) October 31, 2024

We know veterans who are already using psychedelics for mental health treatment. They see it as a better and safer alternative to pharmaceuticals. It lacks the same addictive tendencies and does not carry the concerns of withdrawal. Yet for years the Department of Veterans Affairs and others have resisted calls to study the possibilities of psychedelic treatment for post-traumatic stress and mental health issues plaguing veterans.

That’s not to say these substances aren’t well researched. In fact, prestigious institutions across the world and across America, including here in Massachusetts at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Mass General Hospital, have been looking into the benefits of psychedelics. What they’ve found is nothing short of incredible. A 2023 study found “clinically meaningful and lasting benefits of a brief ayahuasca intervention on PTSD/mood symptoms in military veterans.” A 2022 study from NYU determined that “psilocybin administered in combination with psychotherapy produced robust decreases in percentage of heavy drinking days over and above those produced by active placebo and psychotherapy.”

Question 4 also calls for the elimination of criminal penalties for limited personal use by adults over the age of 21, mirroring the opinion of the American Medical Association and the position of eight Massachusetts municipalities, including Salem, which have decriminalized these substances. No adverse impacts have resulted from these community actions, offering confidence that we can establish a statewide program safely and effectively.

At the same time, we understand that these are powerful substances. Establishing access cannot be taken lightly. Fortunately, passage of Question 4 would take the first step. The required two-year rulemaking timeline allows for a thoughtful process through which regulators can leverage Massachusetts’s unparalleled intellectual capital and lessons from Oregon and Colorado, which previously approved regulated access to psychedelics, to develop a framework for therapy and personal use that is safe and effective.

Decriminalization also means opening the door to honest conversations about these substances. By passing Question 4, we can implement education based on evidence, rather than scare tactics, that promote harm reduction and responsible use. Voting down Question 4 would not keep psychedelics out of Massachusetts—they’re already here—but it would effectively bury our heads in the sand.

Massachusetts has an incredible opportunity to signal to our veteran population—and others who are desperate for new mental health options—that we want to help them. At a time where our country seems to be polarized on every topic, studying psychedelics has bipartisan support. By passing Question 4, Massachusetts can reaffirm our commitment to supporting those who guard the tentpole of democracy and provide them with a new opportunity to get the care they need.

Seth Moulton represents the Sixth Congressional District. Shirley Arrigia represents the Eighth Hampden District in the Massachusetts House of Representatives.

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