Ask anything
Ask anything
✕
Federal recognition of psychedelic therapy has arrived. Here's what the order does, what it doesn't, and what existing options, including at-home ketamine microdosing, mean for the patients who can't wait on Phase 3 timelines.
On April 18, 2026, the White House issued an executive order committing $50 million in federal funds to psychedelic medicine research. The order directs federal agencies to explore accelerated regulatory pathways for substances including ibogaine, psilocybin, and LSD.
The order directs five actions:
The executive order reflects growing federal recognition of psychedelic medicine's potential, which also helps reduce the cultural stigma around psychedelics.
Per the Administration's own materials, 17 U.S. Veterans take their own lives each day and an American dies by suicide every 11 minutes. For the millions of Americans suffering from mental health disorders, a new dose of hope is here, though it may take years for the effects to kick in due to required clinical trials. Patients suffering today need hope measured in days.
While this order opens doors for future research and potential expansion of mental health options, the good news is that ketamine has been a legal, prescribed psychedelic for decades and is already where the order is trying to take other psychedelics.
In the last 60 days, Joyous delivered more than 2 million doses of psychedelic medicine to patients across America.
Ketamine, FDA-approved in 1970 as a dissociative anesthetic, has been prescribed off-label by licensed medical providers for depression and anxiety since the early 2000s. Peer-reviewed studies have explored ketamine’s role in treatment-resistant depression, suicidal ideation, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), including in Veteran populations.
Ketamine operates through a different neurochemical pathway than SSRIs, which supports neuroplasticity: the brain's ability to build new neural pathways. Ketamine treatment has already demonstrated significant mental health benefits for thousands of patients and has been shown to be effective in treating treatment-resistant depression (TRD), a condition affecting approximately one-third of individuals who do not respond to standard antidepressant therapies. Ketamine suits some patients better than others, which is why a licensed medical provider prescribes it based on each patient's medical history and symptoms.
Unlike high-dose psychedelic treatments, Joyous’ microdose ketamine treatment requires no down time, special conditions, or trip sitters. Doses are low enough that patients remain fully oriented throughout treatment, all from the comfort of home. The low doses, multi-layered safety protocols, and affordability of Joyous expands access to this life-saving medication and treatment to thousands of Americans who cannot afford or don’t live near clinics offering ketamine therapies.
Joyous is a public benefit corporation offering at-home microdose ketamine treatment for depression and anxiety, pairing very low-dose ketamine with at-home treatment courses and support for as low as $129/month. Licensed medical providers prescribe ketamine in buccal troches and adjust each patient's dose based on daily check-ins. Joyous offers a free consultation with a licensed medical provider to determine whether the program is a fit!
If you're exploring treatment options for depression, anxiety, or related conditions, talk to a licensed Joyous medical provider. Multiple paths exist, including therapy, traditional medications, and emerging approaches like ketamine microdosing where medically appropriate.
If you or someone you know is in crisis:
.png)
.png)
.png)
