Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang says the U.S. should loosen its ban on psychedelic mushrooms.
“We should explore making psilocybin mushrooms legal for medical and therapeutic use particularly for veterans,” the 2020 contender tweeted on Saturday after meeting with a military veteran in Iowa who told him that the psychedelic substance is the “only treatment he found effective for his depression after returning home.”
On Sunday, Yang followed up by quote-tweeting a CNN article about a study suggesting that psilocybin can be safely administered as a treatment for depression.
Pushing to upend policies prohibiting so-called “magic mushrooms” is the latest bold drug policy reform position for Yang, who has previously called for decriminalizing opioids and using federal funds to support safe injection sites where people could consume illicit substances under medical supervision.
He also backs legalizing marijuana, a position shared by most other Democratic presidential candidates, which the exceptions of former Vice President Joe Biden and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg
Psychedelics reform has taken major strides in the U.S. this year. In May, Denver voters approved a ballot measure making their city the first in the country to decriminalize psilocybin. The Oakland City Council soon followed by passing a resolution decriminalizing not only psychedelic mushrooms but also other entheogenic substances such as ibogaine, ayahuasca and mescaline..
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