$42M for psychedelics research is not how Kentucky should be fighting opioid addiction

On May 31, Kentucky’s Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission announced that it will be allocating approximately $42 million from the state’s Opioid Settlement Fund to research the psychedelic drug, ibogaine.

This decision — framed as a way to combat opioid dependence in the future — is misguided, and funds could be used in a number of ways that would be more immediately beneficial to drug users and those struggling with addiction.

Where is money for ibogaine research coming from?

The $42 million being allocated for ibogaine research is coming from Kentucky’s Opioid Settlement Fund. This fund was developed following a 2022 nationwide agreement with major pharmaceutical distributors and marketers of opioids to distribute $26 billion to populations affected by opioid addiction.

Kentucky was allocated $478 million from this agreement — 50% of which goes to local government, and 50 percent of which is to be received by “the Commonwealth.” Funds allocated to Kentucky increased to over $842 million earlier this year. The commonwealth’s portion is managed by the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Committee , the organization which announced that $42 million will be invested in ibogaine research.

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What is ibogaine?

Ibogaine is an alkaloid found mostly in a few African plants. Its ceremonial use among African tribes has been documented since the early 1900s, but its use for addiction is a more recent development.

Initial studies demonstrating ibogaine’s effectiveness at reducing dependence on drugs like cocaine and heroin in humans were performed by researcher Howard Lotsoff in 1962 and 1963. Throughout the late 1980s and the 1990s, ibogaine was further studied as a treatment for drug dependence.

This research indicated that ibogaine was fairly effective at treating drug dependence, but had a number of concerning side effects. Multiple participants have died within hours or days of treatment with ibogaine, and the drug was found to be cardiotoxic.

Speaking with the publication Psymposia in 2018, ibogaine clinic founder Clare Wilkins explained that reputable ibogaine clinics require cardiac testing before treatment, and continuous cardiac monitoring during treatment.

Wilkins also noted, “Many people who seek out ibogaine for detoxification are poly-drug users. For best outcomes, complete blood and urine panels [also] need to be drawn and analyzed as close to treatment as possible to assess for infection, electrolyte levels, and of course, a toxicology screen.” Wilkins said that her own clinic experienced three patient fatalities early on in its existence, and has had multiple events since which required intervention during treatment.

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Why is Kentucky’s psychedelic research initiative misguided?

While ibogaine has absolutely been found in research and anecdotal reports to help people struggling with drug dependence, there are many existing treatments and initiatives for aiding drug dependence which are currently underfunded and won’t require years of expensive clinical trials.

The OAAC could have funded projects like naloxone and suboxone access initiatives; drug testing services; safe injection sites; expanded access to recovery options like methadone in rural areas; or subsidized food, housing or mental health care for opioid dependent people. Instead, OAAC has pledged millions of dollars to a treatment which has already been researched and found to have a number of significant complications.

This $42 million pledge comes at a time when a historically unheard of amount of money is being poured into for-profit drug development of psychedelics. Some experts predict that the psychedelic pharmaceutical market could be worth $10.75 billion by 2027, and companies are reporting potential price points for clinical treatment with psychedelic drugs around $11,500.

This treatment is expected to be so expensive because of the duration of psychedelic experiences and the required staff needed on hand during those experiences.

Subjective ibogaine experiences can last up to 24 hours and cardiac effects may persist for several days after treatment. Assuming ibogaine treatment is actually approved by the Food and Drug Administration years from now, this treatment will require extensive clinical care. And a price point reflecting that amount of care likely exceeds the accessible funds of many — if not most — people struggling with opioid dependence.

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Medical toxicologist Dr. Ryan Marino expressed concern about Kentucky’s psychedelic research initiative on Twitter, stating, “I’m all for studying psychedelics and making safe ones available for use but why are we trying to medicalize them for a purpose they’ve already failed at for decades and continuing to underfund real, existing, tangible solutions? We need to stop trying to medicalize every drug.”

He continued, “Using these opioid settlement funds for…things like this [is] really disappointing when we still aren’t doing things that could actually help, which is probably why things aren’t getting better.”

While research and anecdotes have reported ibogaine’s usefulness as a treatment for drug dependence, other options (with better track records and less complications) exist and are currently lacking funds. OAAC could have a greater impact on the population it claims to be serving — Kentuckians dependent on opioids — by investing this $42 million into already-existing opioid dependence relief and harm reduction efforts in the state, and social safety nets for people struggling with addiction.

OAAC was reached out to for comment, but did not respond as of the time of publication.

Russell Hausfeld is an investigative journalist and illustrator living in Cincinnati, Ohio. He has been reporting on the psychedelic pharmaceutical industry for the nonprofit, Psymposia, for the last eight years. His work with Psymposia has been cited in Vice, The Nation, Frontiers in Psychology, New York Magazine’s “Cover Story: Power Trip” podcast, the Daily Beast, the Outlaw Report, and Harm Reduction Journal. His work has also been featured in TruthDig, CityBeat, AEQAI, Cincinnati Magazine, and more.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: ibogaine research is not how Kentucky should fight its opioid crisis.