EPA attends Psychedelics event at the European Parliament
The EPA joined an event on psychedelic-assisted therapies at the European Parliament on 6 February 2025.
This was an occasion to celebrate the launch of the PsychedeliCare European Citizen’s Initiative and the re-formation of the PAREA MEP Action Group on Psychedelics In Healthcare.
Our thanks to MEP Tilly Metz and MEP Tomislav Sokol, each members of the SANT Committee on Public Health and the EP Intergroup on Mental Health, for co-organising the event. We were pleased to hear from our partners Frédéric Destrebecq from the European Brain Council (EBC) and Francisca Silva from Psychedelic Access and Research European Alliance (PAREA). The event also featured inspiring presentations from researcher and patient perspectives.
The ECI PsychedeliCare launched its collection of signatures on 14 January 2025. It has one year to gather the necessary one million signatures from EU citizens. The initiative calls on the EU to coordinate the creation of standards with professionals and patients, increase funding for research into psychedelic-assisted therapies, and adopt a common stance on the legal classification of psychedelics at the UN.
The PAREA MEP Action Group on Psychedelics In Healthcare was re-formed after the 2024 EU Elections and its initial founding in 2023.The group unites elected representatives dedicated to promoting the clinical use of psychedelic therapies. MEP Alex Agius Saliba and MEP Tilly Metz will chair the group together.
The EPA is contributing to interest in psychedelics as part of PsyPal, a Horizon Europe project featuring the first multi-site clinical study into psychedelic-assisted therapy funded by the EU. This is a promising area for research into and treatment for improving mental health. Psychiatrists have important perspectives to share on this topic, together with patients, carers, scientists, and the policy community and private sector.
The EPA Task Force on Psychedelic Use in Psychiatry informs the Association’s contributions to scientific consultations on psychedelic-assisted therapies, including at the European Medicines Agency (EMA) in 2024.
▶ Read the EPA Policy Paper on the Use of Psychedelic Treatments in Psychiatric Clinical Practice, published in European Psychiatry on 10 January 2025.
