{"id":34432,"date":"2026-08-19T16:40:56","date_gmt":"2026-08-19T20:40:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/?p=34432"},"modified":"2026-08-19T12:48:31","modified_gmt":"2026-08-19T16:48:31","slug":"study-finds-sustained-benefit-for-people-using-oregon-psilocybin-services","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/2026\/08\/study-finds-sustained-benefit-for-people-using-oregon-psilocybin-services\/","title":{"rendered":"Study finds sustained benefit for people using Oregon psilocybin services"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>People participating in an Oregon Health &amp; Science University-led study of <strong>state-regulated psilocybin services<\/strong> reported relief from symptoms of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder \u2014 with almost two-thirds declaring the experience to be among the most meaningful of their life.<\/p>\n<p>The findings, published today in the journal <em>JAMA Network Open<\/em>, represent the first multisite study of the legalized psilocybin market approved by Oregon voters in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSafety was very similar to what we\u2019ve seen with psychedelics in clinical settings,\u201d said lead author <strong>Todd Korthuis, M.D.<\/strong>, professor of medicine (general internal medicine and geriatrics) in the OHSU School of Medicine. \u201cThat\u2019s important because there was a big question around whether or not safety in carefully controlled psilocybin clinical trials would translate into real-world use.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Oregon voters approved a non-medical wellness model, making state-licensed access to mind-altering \u201cmagic mushrooms\u201d available for people aged 21 and older <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oregon.gov\/oha\/ph\/preventionwellness\/pages\/oregon-psilocybin-services.aspx\">starting in 2023<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>Senior co-author <strong>Adrianne R. Wilson-Poe, Ph.D.<\/strong>, a scientist at the Legacy Research Institute and, with Korthuis, co-director of the <a href=\"https:\/\/openpsychedelicscience.org\/\">Oregon Psychedelic Evaluation Nexis<\/a>, noted that participants reported lasting benefits with few adverse events.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis paper is going to be cited for decades,\u201d she said. \u201cThis is the first large-scale study to monitor the safety and mental health symptoms of real people in the real world.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The study enlisted 346 people who joined licensed facilitators for a single session using psilocybin between November 2024 and June 2026. Participants reported their state of mind at baseline, one week, one month and three months after single psilocybin sessions at 24 licensed service centers in Oregon.<\/p>\n<p>Participants reported their experience through a web-based portal, with 90% continuing to do so through three months. Key findings:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>At one month, 91.5% felt they benefited and 64.9% ranked the experience among the <strong>10 most meaningful of their life<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li>At three months, participants reported decreased moderate-to-severe symptoms of depression, anxiety and PTSD. They also reported improved mental wellbeing and life satisfaction.<\/li>\n<li>Few reported their experience as harmful, although four who used psilocybin for the first time experienced adverse behavioral reactions that required medical attention. No participants reported a serious event related to their physical health.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>The findings will be presented today as part of a Psychedelic Innovation Summit in Portland co-hosted by OHSU and the <a href=\"https:\/\/healingadvocacyfund.org\/\">Healing Advocacy Fund<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThese early results reveal psilocybin\u2019s potential to improve health in people accessing these services here in Oregon,\u201d said OHSU President <strong>Shereef Elnahal, M.D., M.B.A.<\/strong>, who previously served as undersecretary of health in the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.\u00a0 \u201cThe study also provides important insight for policymakers considering programs that permit psychedelics for the treatment of mental health conditions, including PTSD and substance use disorders affecting America\u2019s military Veterans.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>High safety profile<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Korthuis noted that psilocybin isn\u2019t appropriate for people with psychosis, bipolar disorder or who are pregnant. However, he was struck by the low incidence of adverse events among participants in the study. Only seven participants reported the experience as harmful three months after their use of psilocybin.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis may be a reflection of clients who were healthier overall than clinical trial participants,\u201d Korthuis said. \u201cThe results demonstrate it\u2019s safe for people receiving state-regulated psilocybin experiences.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In contrast to previous clinical studies examining safety and effectiveness in treating moderate to severe depression, only about half of the Oregon study participants reported symptoms of moderate to severe depression beforehand. Even so, most participants reported improvements in their mental health, wellness and life satisfaction following their psilocybin session.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<strong>Just because something isn\u2019t a medical model doesn\u2019t mean you can\u2019t have mental health benefits<\/strong>,\u201d Korthuis said. \u201cStill, people serious mental health or medical conditions should talk with their healthcare providers before seeking services.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Previous research, including imaging of the brain, indicates physiological changes that may help people to reset how they process information and view themselves, he said. More than 20,000 people have accessed Oregon licensed psilocybin services to date, seeking improved general health and wellness along with the potential of changing their perspective, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.oregon.gov\/oha\/PH\/PREVENTIONWELLNESS\/Pages\/Psilocybin-Data-Dashboard.aspx?utm_medium=email&amp;utm_source=govdelivery\">data tracked<\/a> by the Oregon Health Authority.<\/p>\n<p>A $3.3 million, five-year federal grant <a href=\"https:\/\/news.ohsu.edu\/2026\/02\/12\/ohsu-led-research-initiative-examines-supervised-psilocybin\">awarded earlier this year<\/a> will enable OHSU researchers to specifically examine psilocybin\u2019s effect on people seeking state psilocybin services to reduce use of illicit substances.<\/p>\n<p>Wilson-Poe said the survey platform developed through this research initiative approved by OHSU\u2019s Institutional Review Board can be easily adapted to measure outcomes from other forms of psychedelics even beyond Oregon \u2014 especially as other states consider policies to expand access. OPEN has already expanded to Colorado, the second state to approve regulated psilocybin services.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt can give us an <strong>apples-to-apples<\/strong> comparison,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<p>In Oregon, a major barrier to access is the cost, which ranges from hundreds to thousands of dollars for a session involving a state-licensed facilitator. In addition, several counties have opted not to permit psilocybin service centers at least in part due to concerns about the safety of psychedelics, whether they\u2019re used medicinally or recreationally.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose counties may find this data reassuring, as may policymakers considering similar measures in other states,\u201d Korthuis said.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to Korthuis and Wilson-Poe, co-authors include <strong>Ryan Cook, Ph.D.<\/strong>, <strong>Devin Gregoire, M.S.<\/strong>, <strong>Kelli Pertl, M.P.H.<\/strong>, <strong>Dennis McCarty, Ph.D.<\/strong>, <strong>Ximena A. Levander, M.D.<\/strong>, and <strong>Kim A. Hoffman, Ph.D.<\/strong>, of OHSU; <strong>Christopher S. Stauffer, M.D.<\/strong>, of OHSU and the VA Portland Health Care System; <strong>Jason B. Luoma, Ph.D.<\/strong>, of the Portland Institute for Psychedelic Science; and <strong>Don Des Jarlais, Ph.D.<\/strong>, of New York University.<\/p>\n<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on the_content --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on the_content -->","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>People participating in an Oregon Health &amp; Science University-led study of state-regulated psilocybin services reported relief from symptoms of anxiety, depression and post-traumatic stress disorder \u2014 with almost two-thirds declaring the experience to be among the most meaningful of their life. The findings, published today in the journal JAMA Network Open, represent the first multisite&hellip;&nbsp;<!-- AddThis Advanced Settings generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><!-- AddThis Share Buttons generic via filter on get_the_excerpt --><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":34433,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"no","rop_publish_now_accounts":[],"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"off","neve_meta_content_width":70,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[358,6,332],"tags":[180,861,862,863,860,639],"class_list":["post-34432","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-medication","category-neuroscience","category-psychotherapy-2","tag-health-2","tag-legalised","tag-licensed","tag-medical","tag-mushrooms","tag-psilocybin"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34432","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34432"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34432\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":34434,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34432\/revisions\/34434"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/34433"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34432"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34432"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/therapytoronto.ca\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34432"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}