Future of Psychedelics: Psilocybin Business Models

Besides leading to mass incarceration and stopping advances in medicine and understanding of the human brain, the “War on Drugs” has cost us, as a society, money. A lot of money. Since the “official” declaration of the “War on Drugs” (my soul hurts writing such a ridiculous sentence) by the Nixon administration in 1971, the United States has spent approximately $640 billion on the “War on Drugs”.

But that’s not the type of lost money we’re discussing today. In addition to ridiculous government spending on a “war” with no concrete objective or endgame, the “War on Drugs” carries an opportunity cost – the lost business opportunities caused by stigmatizing and criminalizing cannabis, psilocybin, and similar substances.

Luckily, rational, reasonable people have used solid science to objectively evaluate the therapeutic potential of psilocybin. Results are looking promising. With liberalization of drug laws comes business opportunities – time to dig into some of these possibilities.

 

Psilocybin and Psychedelic Prescriptions

Prescribing psilocybin and other psychedelics will, in some ways, mimic the experience of receiving a prescription for a medication to manage blood pressure or cholesterol.

Working with a healthcare professional, like a physician, a diagnosis is made for a patient. If it’s agreed that a medication is the preferred treatment, a prescription is written for the patient to receive from a pharmacy.

Trials of psilocybin show how this may play out if psilocybin becomes available by prescription, as anticipated in the next few years. A healthcare professional and patient agree that the patient will be prescribed psilocybin. The patient receives said prescription in the form of, for example, psilocybin capsules.

For investors, opportunity may be found in existing pharmaceutical companies investing in psilocybin. For example, Otsuka Holdings Co. (OTSKF) invested in Compass Pathways during a 2020 Series B investment round. There’s also the option of siding your money with start-ups like Psycheceutical, Inc. – a subsidiary of Blue Water Ventures International (OTC: BWVI).

However – we can’t treat this exactly the same as picking up a prescription for a blood pressure medication at your local pharmacy. The experience of taking psilocybin differs quite drastically from taking lisinopril. Which leads us to…

 

Psilocybin Sessions

Taking a blood pressure medication is, for the purposes of this article, simple. You take the medication according to instructions from your doctor or healthcare provider. Then your blood pressure is monitored to gauge whether the medication is effective for you.

Given that psilocybin is a hallucinogenic substance which produces reality-distorting and mind-altering effects, leaving people to take it on their own devices – particularly with a medical intent – may not be…ideal.

Enter: clinic-based psilocybin sessions.

During a psilocybin session, psilocybin is taken in a controlled, safe environment under the watch of a trained psychotherapist. Again, we can look at how clinical trials to date have worked to gain a glimpse into how this may play out at-scale if (when?) psilocybin becomes available by prescription.

The first step is preparation. You and the therapist get to know each other over a couple of sessions to form a trusting relationship. This helps alleviate anxiety you may have about the session – it’s very important that you feel comfortable and at ease with your surroundings (including your therapist) during sessions.

Next – the actual session. You lie back on a bed in a comfortable room – not a doctor’s office or a drab hospital room, but a room specifically designed for hosting psilocybin sessions. Think “Millennial Plant Lady” (we all know one by now) vibes. You’re given a dose of psilocybin in a capsule. You’re also given headphones to listen to a specially-curated music playlist (ideally, one you and your therapist developed together leading up to the session), and an eye mask to help you channel your focus internally. Sessions typically last around 6 to 8 hours. During this time, a therapist (and possibly an assistant therapist) is on-hand in the room with you.

The final step takes place after the session. You and your therapist discuss the session – what you felt, saw, experienced. The goal is for you to develop your own insights and interpretations of the experience, and how these can be used to change unhelpful behavioral and emotional patterns you’ve developed.

 

Psilocybin Retreats

What if you’re interested in a more social or group-based treatment? Let’s say you’re someone interested in psilocybin, but working one-on-one in an office sort of room isn’t your thing. Here’s the neat thing about a (properly regulated) free market: you get options! And we project options with psilocybin sessions.

Psilocybin retreats are, in fact, already a thing. They’re happening – like, now. Beckley Retreats currently has offerings in locations in Jamaica and The Netherlands, where psilocybin cultivation and use are legal. Beckley Retreats consist of three stages:

1. “Prepare”, a 4-week virtual program where you “meet” fellow retreat attendees, engaging in one-on-one and group activities to begin the pre-work necessary before sessions.
2. “Immerse”, a 5-night retreat consisting of two psilocybin “ceremonies” (as they put it), along with “meditation and other transformational practices for an optimal experience.”
3. “Integrate”, a 6-week virtual program following the actual retreat. This consists of daily self-practices, weekly group sessions, and other techniques to help sustain and integrate your retreat experience into your daily life.

Anticipate an interesting synergy between medicine and hospitality industries. Years ago, it was predicted we’d see a “retailization” of healthcare – and big retailers like Amazon (AMZN) and Wal-Mart (WMT) took advantage. It’s not farfetched to anticipate hospitality giants like Marriott (MAR) or AirBnB (ABNB) buying a stake in the psilocybin session space.

There’s also space for smaller entrepreneurs to carve out territory. Small-group and solo psilocybin sessions have been available for years – but without regulation or any way for the customer to know what they’re getting into beyond trusting the “guide” to, well, be a good person. And, due to psilocybin’s status as an illegal substance, it’s hard to talk about or compare services. Local guided tours – especially “curated experiences” -have greatly benefited from the internet and advances in mobile technology. Finding local guides to show you all the local’s favorites has never been easier thanks to platforms like TripAdvisor and Yelp. Instead of being restricted to large tours, you can have a curated, private tour from a local resident.

Expect to see the same for “locally curated” psilocybin sessions. You’ll have a big advantage if you live in a destination city, but you’ll also face more competition. If you’re in a lesser-known or “flyover” locale, it may take convincing to get customers to visit – but you’ll also have an easier path to becoming THE psilocybin go-to for miles around.

 

Telehealth and Psilocybin

Whether we were ready for it or not, the COVID-19 pandemic ushered in the era of telehealth. 

While telehealth had existed for some time, slowly crawling into acceptance, social distancing and full wards forced healthcare workers and patients alike to accept telehealth as an integral part of the healthcare ecosystem.

Given the rapid rise in telehealth adaptation over the past few years, it would be foolish to think this modality won’t play a major role in psychedelic therapy.

For example: telehealth could be used to provide a psychotherapist remotely to a patient living in an area without access to such a specialist. Trained assistant therapists could still visit the patients’ home. This is similar to how telehealth is used to allow doctors to see patients remotely, while a nurse or medical assistant still tends to other needs of the patient in person.

Telehealth may also be used for pre- and post-session appointments. A psilocybin session may be conducted in person, while all other appointments are done remotely. Telehealth could play a role in other modalities we’ve discussed, such as retreats and small-group sessions. In fact, it already is – remember Beckley Retreats and their virtual pre-sessions? That’s it. That’s telehealth in action in the psilocybin space already. (If you’re not getting the hint that the best time to take action was yesterday and the second best time is today, this may be the wrong newsletter for you).

Some current big players to watch in the telehealth space include:

• Amazon (AMZN)
• Teladoc Health (TDOC)
• Doximity (DOCS)
• Amwell (AMWL)