Bill Seeks to Legalize Psychedelic Mushroom at Licensed Treatment Facilities in Hawai‘i

Senator Stanley Chang (District 9 – Hawai‘i Kai, Kuli‘ou‘ou, Niu, ‘Āina Haina, Wai‘alae-Kahala and Diamond Head) recently introduced a bill that would remove psilocybin and psilocyn from the list of Schedule I substances.

The substances are psychedelic and are obtained from hallucinogenic mushrooms.

SB 738 would also require the Department of Health to establish designated treatment centers for the therapeutic administration of psilocybin and psilocyn; and create a review panel to review and assess the effects of this measure.

“There is an increasing number of reputable studies that show how psilocybin and psilocyn can have promising results on people suffering from depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and addiction,” said Senator Chang. “People with these conditions need options and this bill would give them that while also ensuring that is stored and administered at licensed treatment facilities.”

Sen. Chang notes that if passed, Hawaiʻi would join Oregon as the second state to legalize psychedelic mushrooms. The bill specifically seeks decriminalization of the substances, removal from the Schedule I list, and permission to use psilocybin and psilocyn in therapeutic administration.