Dr. Shereef Elnahal told POLITICO that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s stance on psychedelic treatments aligns with his goals to expand research and potential treatment options for veterans.
Source: POLITICO
Dr. Shereef Elnahal, under secretary for health at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs under the Biden administration has expressed interest in continuing his role under the incoming Trump administration.
Elnahal has been an advocate for psychedelic therapy. Elnahal told POLITICO that Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s stance on psychedelic treatments aligns with his goals to expand research and potential treatment options for veterans. Elnahal is President Trump’s Health and Human Services secretary nominee.
Under Elnahal’s leadership, the VA began funding psychedelic research for PTSD and depression for the first time since the 1960s. With nearly 17 veterans dying by suicide daily and thousands traveling abroad for psychedelic therapy, Elnahal argues that these treatments should be available domestically in controlled settings.
While the VA’s psychedelics research will continue regardless of leadership changes, supporters worry that advancing the field would be more challenging without Elnahal. However, his chances of staying on may be slim, as Trump has typically appointed loyalists and celebrities to his administration.
Read the full article on POLITICO.