It’s been over one year since Oregon’s first psilocybin therapy license was approved, and updated news reports are sharing that there aren’t enough customers to go around.
Vital Reset, owned by Heidi Venture, told the Oregon Capital Chronicle that it’s just a matter of time for people to become aware of the opportunity. “We think everybody knows that psychedelics can help them because we’re in this little bubble. But 99% of people have no idea what they could get out of a journey,” Venture said.
The Psilocybin Assisted Therapy Association hosted a one-day conference in May, called “Collaborence,” which was held in Portland, Oregon. Venture, along with more than 100 local psilocybin business owners, gathered together to attend panel discussions on the topic of the mental health crisis both in Oregon and throughout the country. Panelists also spoke about the current issues of their businesses, but also the benefits that they saw their patients.
Voters passed Measure 109 in November 2020, making Oregon the first state to legalize licensed psilocybin treatment centers. The first license was approved in May 2023 for EPIC Healing Eugene, which opened just a month later in June 2023. As of last September, there were 10 licensed service centers (not all of which were operational at the time, as well as four growers, and two lab testing facilities.
Between June 2023-December 2023, an estimated 700 people had taken part in an experience at a psilocybin treatment center. Between June 2023-June 2024, approximately 3,500 people have taken part in a psilocybin therapy session throughout the state’s 25 licensed centers. According to the Healing Advocacy Fund, a nonprofit organization that prioritizes safe and affordable psilocybin access, projects that the number of people who will take part in psilocybin therapy will increase to 7,000 by the end of 2024.
However, in March 2024, one licensed center called The …
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Author: Nicole Potter / High Times
