Trump Administration Moves to Loosen Federal Grip on Psychedelics and Medical Marijuana

The Trump administration is quietly accelerating support for psychedelic therapies and medical marijuana, breaking with its usual hardline stance by easing federal restrictions that have long stifled research and business operations in these areas.

On April 18, 2026, the president signed an executive order directing the FDA and DEA to speed approvals and expand access to psychedelic drugs designated as Breakthrough Therapies for serious mental illnesses. This includes enabling patients to access investigational psychedelics like ibogaine under the Right to Try Act, a law originally designed to help terminally ill patients access experimental treatments. The order also mandates at least $50 million be funneled through the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H) to support state programs advancing psychedelic therapies, alongside efforts to boost clinical trials and data sharing involving the Department of Veterans Affairs and private sector partners.

In a related move, the Department of Justice issued a final order rescheduling FDA-approved marijuana products and state-licensed medical marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III under the Controlled Substances Act. This reclassification reduces the federal tax burden under Section 280E for medical marijuana operators and creates a streamlined federal registration process based on valid state licenses. Notably, recreational marijuana and unlicensed products remain Schedule I, preserving significant federal restrictions.

These changes mark a significant departure from the historically rigid federal drug policies that lumped psychedelics and marijuana with heroin and LSD, effectively blocking research and business growth. The administration’s actions sidestep traditional rulemaking processes, leveraging the attorney general’s treaty obligations to expedite rescheduling.

While this shift may open doors for pharmaceutical companies, healthcare investors, cannabis operators, and state regulators, it also raises questions about the motivations behind this sudden liberalization within an administration better known for authoritarian overreach and attacks on civil rights.

We will be watching closely to see if these policy tweaks translate into real-world improvements in mental health treatment access or if they serve as a smokescreen for other agenda items. What’s clear is that federal drug policy is inching toward modernization — even if the Trump administration’s track record demands skepticism about who really benefits.