AN ACT CONCERNING THE PSYCHEDELIC-ASSISTED THERAPY PILOT PROGRAM.

Plain English Breakdown

The official text includes a bracketed section suggesting the program ends when MDMA and psilocybin are approved for medical use by federal agencies; however, this specific clause appears editorialized or conditional in the provided excerpt.

Expanding Access to the Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Pilot Program

This law updates rules for a state research program that provides therapy using MDMA or psilocybin to qualified patients.

What This Bill Does

• Replaces old laws with new definitions and rules effective July 1, 2026.
• Requires the Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services to run a pilot program administered by a state medical school using available funds.
• Allows qualified patients to receive MDMA-assisted or psilocybin-assisted therapy as part of an FDA-approved research program.

Who It Names or Affects

• Adults aged eighteen or older who are residents and meet clinical criteria, including veterans, retired first responders, or direct care health workers.
• The Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services.
• A selected medical school within the state that will administer the program.

Terms To Know

MDMA

A synthetic psychoactive drug, commonly known as ecstasy or molly, that acts on serotonin and dopamine receptors.

Psilocybin

A substance found naturally in some mushroom species that acts on serotonin receptors.

Qualified patient

An individual aged eighteen or older who meets clinical criteria set by an institutional review board, including state residents who are veterans, retired first responders, or direct care health workers.

Limits and Unknowns

• The program must operate within available budget appropriations.
• Clinical eligibility rules established by the medical school's institutional review board may limit access beyond job status requirements.
• The text does not specify a fixed end date for this version of the pilot program.

Official Summary Text

To expand access to and extend the psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot program.

Current Bill Text

Senate Bill No. 191

Public Act No. 26-108

AN ACT CONCERNING THE PSYCHEDELIC -ASSISTED THERAPY
PILOT PROGRAM.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General
Assembly convened:

Section 1. Section 17a-484g of the general statutes is repealed and the
following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2026):
(a) As used in this section:
(1) "MDMA" means the synthetic psychoactive drug, 3,4 -
methylenedioxymethamphetamine, commonly known as ecstasy or
molly, that acts as a serotonin receptor agonist and reuptake inhibitor of
serotonin and dopamine.
(2) "Psilocybin" means a serotonin receptor agonist that occurs
naturally in some mushroom species.
(3) "Qualified patient" means an individual who is eighteen years of
age or older and meets clinical eligibility criteria established by the
institutional review board of the medical school selected to administer
the pilot program under subsection (b) of this section, including, but not
limited to, a resident of the state who is (A) a veteran, (B) a retired first
responder, or (C) a direct care health care worker.
Senate Bill No. 191

Public Act No. 26-108 2 of 2

(b) [Not later than January 1, 2023, the ] The Department of Mental
Health and Addiction Services shall establish, within available
appropriations, a psychedelic -assisted therapy pilot program, to be
administered by a medical school in the state. Such pilot program shall
provide qualified patients wit h MDMA-assisted or psilocybin -assisted
therapy as part of a research program approved by the federal Food and
Drug Administration pursuant to 21 CFR 312, as amended from time to
time. [The department shall cease to operate the pilot program when
MDMA and p silocybin have been approved to have a medical use by
the Drug Enforcement Administration, or any successor agency.]