Leopoldo J. Cabassa, professor at the Brown School and co-founder of WashU’s Center for Holistic Interdisciplinary Research in Psychedelics (CHIRP), is urging greater focus on equitable access as psychedelic-assisted therapy gains momentum in mainstream mental health care.
In a recent episode of the podcast Survival in the Trenches: Life Beyond Loss, Cabassa, who also co-directs the Brown School’s Center for Mental Health Services Research, discussed the promise of psychedelic therapy for conditions like treatment-resistant PTSD, depression, as well as the challenges that could hinder fair and widespread access.
A nationally recognized expert in health equity and implementation science, Cabassa emphasized the need to prioritize equitable access from the outset. Without intentional planning, he warned, the treatment could be available only to the privileged.
“This is great,” Cabassa said of the emerging treatment on the podcast, “but the moment this enters the market, if people are not thinking about who’s going to use this treatment? Who’s going to deliver it? What about the people who are most in need? This could all fall apart, or this is going to be a treatment just for very high-income individuals that have the resources.”
While studies show encouraging results, Cabassa cautioned that psychedelics alone are not a cure-all.