With the Nov. 8 election just around the corner, one ballot item is still under much deliberation. In response to the passing of measure 109, authorizing the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to create a program to permit licensed service providers to administer psilocybin products, OHA advisory groups are in the process of creating guidelines for these operations.
In Creswell, this relates to Ordinance No. 552, and in Cottage Grove, it relates to Ordinance No. 3162, both “Declaring A Ban on Psilocybin Service Centers and the Manufacture of Psilocybin Products” on the November ballots.
The Equity Subcommittee of the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board recently met to discuss guidelines in an effort to make psilocybin services equitable. Strategies were discussed in length, and all suggestions hinged on the tension between profit and accessibility.
“There is a balance that has to be struck between providing enough funding for the program to operate and also providing low enough fees that people who need to be able
With the Nov. 8 election just around the corner, one ballot item is still under much deliberation. In response to the passing of measure 109, authorizing the Oregon Health Authority (OHA) to create a program to permit licensed service providers to administer psilocybin products, OHA advisory groups are in the process of creating guidelines for these operations.
In Creswell, this relates to Ordinance No. 552, and in Cottage Grove, it relates to Ordinance No. 3162, both “Declaring A Ban on Psilocybin Service Centers and the Manufacture of Psilocybin Products” on the November ballots.
The Equity Subcommittee of the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board recently met to discuss guidelines in an effort to make psilocybin services equitable. Strategies were discussed in length, and all suggestions hinged on the tension between profit and accessibility.
“There is a balance that has to be struck between providing enough funding for the program to operate and also providing low enough fees that people who need to be able to access these services of all income types have the ability to do so,” said Angela Carter, naturopathic doctor and member of the subcommittee. “That’s where I see a conundrum at this point.”
The proposed fees for licensure application, renewal, and manufactured fees proposed were $500 for an initial license application and $150 for a facilitator. Once the license application is approved, fees would be $10,000 for a manufacturer or service center, $2,000 for a facilitator and $10,000 for a lab. These fees are way too high, according to multiple members of the board.
Elan Hagens, member of the subcommittee and owner of an edible dispensary in Portland, was concerned about how these fees would hinder small businesses and only be feasible for larger corporations.
Dr. Rachel Knox, another member of the subcommittee, stated that these proposed fees were even higher than costs for her medical license.
“Fees are the single most significant barrier to entry into the opportunity of a psilocybin business in our state which to me goes against sort of the spirit of the bill … I don’t think we’ve hit the mark here. I think we’re far from it,” Knox said.
Knox introduced the idea of a sliding-scale fee for businesses, meaning the higher the projected revenue and size of the company, the larger the fees and vice versa. This was originally shot by the Rules and Advisory Committee (RAC). However, Knox believes this would be relatively easy to implement and hopes the RAC will reconsider.
Because the tax benefit from psilocybin will be significantly lower than the revenue from marijuana tax, it seems that the cost of these services will be more expensive than marijuana products.
How to make psilocybin serviced affordable while also profitable, is proving to be a complex discussion. The subcommittee plans to state their concerns to the Oregon Psilocybin Advisory Board and multiple RAC’s will continue to meet in October.
Final operation, cost, and licensure guidelines will be released by Dec. 31, 2022, as OHA will begin accepting licensure applications on Jan. 1, 2023.
