An advisory committee under Puerto Rico’s Department of Health that is evaluating the feasibility of conducting clinical research into “emerging therapies” using psychedelic substances on the island will submit its preliminary report in November. But the government faces a major obstacle if it decides to establish such a program: funding.

Although Gov. Jenniffer González Colón announced the committee and the possibility of psychedelic research with great fanfare in August, no funding source has yet been identified to finance the studies. The plan is to apply for a federal grant, Health Secretary Víctor Ramos Otero acknowledged to the Centro de Periodismo Investigativo (CPI). The federal funding would require a matching contribution equal to the amount invested by the Puerto Rico government.

In August, the governor signed Executive Order OE-2026-37, creating the Scientific and Regulatory Advisory Committee to advise the health secretary on whether to establish a Pilot Clinical Research Program in Emerging Therapies.

At the committee’s first meeting Oct. 13, which brought together government officials, academics and mental health professionals, two working groups were established: one to identify priority patient populations and another to determine which drugs should be prioritized for pilot research projects, Ramos Otero told the CPI after the meeting.

“Each group will establish the evidence and rationale for why these patients and why these drugs,” the official said.

The executive order already identifies veterans as a priority population for clinical trials and mentions psychedelics such as ibogaine, MDMA and psilocybin as substances that “continue to be the subject of scientific research and regulatory evaluation.” The order does not identify a funding source for clinical research if the pilot program is implemented.

In recent years, the United States — which for decades has pursued a “war on drugs” policy — has seen growing interest in studying psychedelic therapies to treat mental health conditions, driven primarily by military veterans. Texas, for example, announced that it would allocate $50 million in state funds to clinical research on ibogaine, a hallucinogenic substance derived from the root of an African shrub that is currently classified as a controlled substance.

Major pharmaceutical companies are already investing billions of dollars in psychedelic drugs. In July, Eli Lilly announced that it would acquire psychedelic drugmaker AtaiBeckley for up to $3.8 billion. In June, Otsuka America completed its multibillion-dollar acquisition of Transcend Therapeutics, which is studying an MDMA-like substance to treat post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

What Do Psychedelic Therapies Involve?

Psychedelic-assisted therapies involve the use of psychoactive substances alongside psychotherapy, explained Leopoldo J. Cabassa, a researcher at Washington University, where he co-directs the Center for Holistic Interdisciplinary Research in Psychedelics and the Center for Mental Health Services Research.

“When someone is given ecstasy [MDMA] in a therapeutic setting, it can allow them to relive that trauma, talk about it and process it without experiencing the terror and all the physiological and psychological reactions that occur when someone has experienced trauma,” Cabassa explained.

Rafael Torruella, executive director of Intercambios Puerto Rico, an organization that works on substance use issues and belongs to the Latin American and Caribbean Network of People Who Use Drugs, believes this is “a good time” for psychedelics to become part of Puerto Rican society. However, he cautioned that these efforts should be guided by therapists, people with lived experience and nongovernmental organizations working on substance use issues, rather than by a government interested in “generating revenue.”

“I think we’re at a good point for psychedelics to become part of our society, but it has to be handled properly. And as with everything the government does, even though I think this is a good move, we have to approach it with a great deal of caution,” Torruella said.

Through Executive Order OE-2026-37, the González Colón administration is seeking access to federal funding established in April through an executive order signed by President Donald Trump that accelerates Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review procedures for psychedelic compounds. Trump’s order allocates $50 million “to support and collaborate” with state governments developing programs that promote the use of psychedelic drugs to treat serious mental illnesses.

The health secretary said that if the committee endorses the pilot program and the governor accepts its recommendation, the start of clinical trials will depend on the federal funding the agency can secure.

“The idea is to apply for the federal grant. If we don’t get it — although usually, at least with the grants submitted by the Department of Health, we generally put together strong applications and have never had problems getting funding — we would have to discuss whether to move forward. That’s a discussion we would have to have at that point,” said Ramos Otero, who did not identify an alternative source of local funding.

Cabassa estimated that these clinical trials cost more than $1 million per study. The studies, he added, are small, involving fewer than 100 people, and participants must have transportation and enough time available because they spend about eight hours at their appointment on the day they receive the dose. “It takes a lot of time, and it’s going to require a lot of infrastructure,” Cabassa said.

The researcher also emphasized the importance of not only conducting clinical trials but also training clinical professionals and field practitioners to provide psychedelic-assisted therapies.

Paulina Rullán Farinacci, director of education and research at Pravan Foundation and a member of the advisory committee established by the governor, said training mental health professionals in Puerto Rico in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy should be “a priority.” She also said there is no official registry of professionals trained in this field in Puerto Rico.

“Many health professionals leave Puerto Rico to get these certifications, but we actually already have the capacity here to continue training our own people,” said Rullán Farinacci, who noted that Pravan Foundation, in collaboration with the Psychedelic Research and Training Institute (PRATI), trained approximately 25 mental health professionals in the fundamentals of psychedelic medicine in November 2025.

Psychedelic Uses Under Evaluation

Although no classic psychedelic has been approved in the United States for widespread medical use, several substances are being studied in clinical trials to treat several mental health disorders. Psilocybin for depression, for example, has already reached Phase 3 clinical trials and is set to undergo FDA review. At the state level, Colorado and Oregon have legalized psilocybin therapies.

Classic psychedelics, such as lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), interact with serotonin 2A receptors in the brain, causing changes in perception, cognition and emotions. Nonclassic psychedelics, such as MDMA and ketamine, either do not interact with these receptors or do so to a much lesser extent.

Meanwhile, the FDA requested public comments this month on how to design studies involving ibogaine. The agency is seeking specific feedback on overall study design, including appropriate patient populations, suitable doses, and safety and ethical considerations.

Rullán Farinacci emphasized the importance of continuing to study substances such as ketamine, a nonclassic psychedelic approved by the federal agency as an anesthetic that can also be used to treat depression.

“It’s important to start building the infrastructure to work with what we have now, so that we’ll be ready to implement other medicines as they continue through the regulatory and approval processes,” she said.

In Puerto Rico, the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Puerto Rico’s Medical Sciences Campus, in collaboration with Pravan Foundation, is already conducting a clinical trial involving esketamine, a nonclassic psychedelic that has FDA approval for treatment-resistant depression. The study aims to compare patients’ symptoms, remission rates, duration of effects and experiences when receiving the drug alone or as part of a psychedelic therapy model that includes preparation and integration sessions, Rullán Farinacci explained.

The committee evaluating psychedelic research in Puerto Rico has 16 members: five government representatives, six UPR faculty members, two clinical psychologists in private practice and three members of Pravan Foundation, an organization that promotes psychedelic therapies and organizes a summit on psychedelic medicine. Two of Pravan Foundation’s representatives on the committee, Rullán Farinacci and David Melchor, are also executives of several medical services corporations and a clinic that plans to offer ketamine therapies when it opens.

The committee has until Nov. 25 to submit a preliminary report with its recommendations to the health secretary, who will present it to the governor. González Colón said she will then make the final decision on whether to continue the evaluation and, eventually, whether to implement the full pilot project and apply for funding.

This translation was generated with the assistance of AI and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy and clarity.