Vote YES on Oregon Ballot Measures 109 and 110
As Oregon voters consider our ballots this fall, which you should receive in your mailbox by October 20th, the East Fork team urges you to vote “Yes” on Measures 109 and 110.
These two progressive reforms, in tandem, will fund comprehensive addiction treatment services and decriminalize personal possession of small amounts of drugs (Measure 110), while also creating a framework for legal psilocybin-assisted therapy to aid in healing from depression, trauma, addiction, and other mental health issues (Measure 109).
Measure 110
Voting YES on Measure 110 will shift us from erroneously punishing people with a drug addiction to instead using a health-based, treatment-first approach to help people. A more humane approach that’s long overdue.
Oregon ranks nearly last of all states in access to basic drug treatment. One in 10 Oregonians is addicted to drugs, and one to two Oregonians die of drug overdoses every day, sometimes while they are waiting to get treatment. This is a crisis.
Meanwhile, with our current laws Oregon authorities still arrest nearly 9,000 people a year for simple drug possession, punishing them instead of offering treatment. Possession of even a small amount of drugs can land someone in jail and saddle them with a lifelong criminal record that prevents them from getting a job, getting housing or even a credit card. Many others struggling with addiction don’t seek treatment for fear of being arrested.
Measure 110 will greatly expand access to drug treatment and recovery services throughout the state, using funds from Oregon’s existing cannabis tax. Under Measure 110, anyone who wants services will be able to get them, not just those who have the funds or the “right” insurance plan. We can save lives and save money.
Because of its humane, health-based approach to addressing drug addiction, Measure 110 has received more than one hundred endorsements from organizations across the state, including the American College of Physicians, the Oregon Nurses Association, Oregon School Psychologists’ Association, the Law Enforcement Action Partnership, the Crime Victims’ Rights Alliance, and the Academy of Family Physicians.
According to two OHSU Emergency physicians, “Measure 110 offers those struggling with addiction a way out, while offering our state a path forward to treat addiction humanely and effectively. Measure 110 isn’t just a good idea; it is literally a life and death matter.”
Measure 109
Pioneering research shows that psilocybin therapy has helped those suffering from depression, anxiety, and addiction. Voting YES on Measure 109 would:
Establish a well regulated psilocybin therapy system in Oregon managed by the Oregon Health Authority
Give Oregonians suffering from anxiety and depression access to a “breakthrough therapy”
Leverage the latest research from research institutions like Johns Hopkins, UCLA, and NYU
Support and protect Oregonians to finally get us the help and healing we need, which is now more important than ever
Psilocybin therapy is a mental health therapy that uses psilocybin, a plant medicine derivative found in mushrooms, to treat depression, anxiety, addiction and other mental health challenges.
Click this link to watch a video on how the process works.
Pioneering research by institutions like Johns Hopkins and UCLA has shown that psilocybin therapy has helped people break through a variety of mental health conditions. It appears to be uniquely effective in treating depression, end-of-life anxiety, and addiction. A recent study from NYU showed that psilocybin therapy significantly reduced depression and anxiety symptoms in 80 percent of the cancer patient participants, with few side effects.
Outside of clinical studies, psilocybin therapy is not currently available— but that may be quickly changing. Measure 109 would create a new program that would allow people to get access to psilocybin therapy to treat depression, anxiety, and addiction without a specific diagnosis — potentially helping thousands.
Supported by medical experts, veterans, and people from more than 300 Oregon cities, Measure 109 is a carefully crafted ballot measure that will create a psilocybin therapy program so Oregonians have this “breakthrough” therapeutic option available and accessible.
We hope all Oregonians will join the East Fork team in voting YES on Measures 110 and 109 to empower plant medicine and open urgently needed pathways for healing.
