Louisiana's Opioid-Settlement-Funded Psychedelic Pilot Program Just Took Effect
SB 43 became law on August 1 without Governor Jeff Landry's signature, after passing both chambers unanimously in May. It creates a psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot inside the Louisiana Department of Health, funded by the roughly $600 million the state is due through 2038 from opioid settlement payouts — money extracted from the companies that helped cause the crisis, redirected toward trials of psilocybin, ibogaine, and MDMA for opioid use disorder and co-occurring conditions. Any studies still have to clear the FDA's investigational drug process and get DEA Schedule I permits like anyone else's would. If a drug developed through the program is ever approved, the state gets a 20% cut of the profits — a funding model we haven't seen elsewhere in this space.
Read at Marijuana Moment