America faces a mental health crisis, and sadly, our federal government is not keeping pace. Every day, over 130 Americans die by suicide, including over 20 veterans per day. Psychedelic-assisted therapies have emerged as a promising new alternative for treatment-resistant depression, post-traumatic-stress disorder, substance use disorders, and generalized anxiety disorder. But instead of receiving these therapies here in the U.S., our veterans and other Americans are going abroad in search of these often lifesaving psychedelic-assisted therapies.

We are grateful for the Trump administration’s work to accelerate research on these therapies and the Food and Drug Administration’s granting of Breakthrough Therapy designation to multiple psychedelic-based drug products, including psilocybin and MDMA. But more needs to be done at the federal level to ensure safe and effective therapies reach the people who need them the most. Two years ago, our bipartisan Congressional Psychedelics Advancing Therapies or "PATH" Caucus issued a formal request for information, asking for feedback on how we can safely and effectively integrate psychedelic medicine into the U.S. health care system.

Respondents made clear that psychedelics are not necessarily magic bullets. But if delivered in a safe and structured environment, they can be transformative for American patients. And that is exactly why we need new federal policies that create nationwide standards for the safe use of these treatments in medical settings. We need a national framework to ensure safe and equitable access. Responses to our PATH Caucus request for information point toward a pragmatic path of accelerating legitimate medical development while building strong guardrails for safety, ethics and equity. That begins with national standards for service delivery and practitioner credentialing.

Stakeholders across the spectrum agree that our nation needs guidance and verification systems in place before the coming FDA approvals of psychedelic therapies. We also need labeling requirements for psychedelic medicine and the codification of best practices for “set and setting,” crisis response, and pre- and post-session integration support. If we want to fulfill the full public health potential of psychedelic medicine, Congress and federal agencies also need to tackle these issues head-on.

It’s no longer a matter of if psychedelic-assisted therapies will enter the American health care system, but when. All attention must focus on how we can integrate them safely and effectively, so that patients in need can access these treatments. We must seize this moment by establishing a coherent set of standards that protect patients, deliver equitable access, and yield life-enhancing benefits for every American suffering from severe mental and physical health challenges.

Jack Bergman represents Michigan’s 1st Congressional District and is a retired Marine Corps lieutenant general. Lou Correa represents California’s 46th Congressional District. Both members serve as co-chairs of the Congressional PATH Caucus.