The Psilocybin Constitutional Challenge: Hartle et. al. v. HMTK

Eight brave plaintiffs are suing the federal government alleging that seriously ill patients are not getting reasonable access to medical psilocybin. This miraculous drug should be widely used to address the depression and anxiety epidemic in Canada. It should be especially available to those facing the existential misery associated with end-of-life, treatment-resistant depression and anxiety. It should be busy alleviating the terrible pain associated with cluster headaches, migraines and many neurological disorders. It should be on the front lines fighting the opioid scourge as a harm reduction tool. Instead, it is practically unavailable in Canada. For such a safe substance that can do so much good that is morally wrong and contrary to section 7 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. These bad laws must be and will be struck down. The government will then be forced to implement fair regulations that permit reasonable access. Reasonable access means no requirements that the patient try every invasive therapy and a laundry list of barely-available pharmaceuticals with nasty side effects. Reasonable access means no complex applications full of deeply personal information sent to the Minister of Health and anonymous bureaucrats. Reasonable access means no waiting for clinical trials that are not focused on the patient, might be just a placebo, require long waits, and are not available anyway. Reasonable access means the patient and the doctor (the professional committed to the patient’s best interests) discuss what is best for the patient and if the doctor supports access then the doctor signs a piece of paper permitting the patient access. That is how health care works. Reasonable access means health care professionals can legally access psilocybin in order to be better trained. That is important for safety and efficacy. Reasonable access for patients means properly trained therapists. Reasonable access also means that the patient can choose whether they want natural psilocybin mushrooms or synthetic psilocybin. Reasonable access is patient-focused.

If you too have had problematic experiences attempting to access legal medical psilocybin please contact me.