A STAT article highlights three key areas in drug policy that could see movement in 2026 – marijuana, psychedelics, and opioid overdose deaths.

The details:

• Marijuana: While President Trump’s executive order last month makes clear the administration’s intentions to reschedule marijuana in Schedule III, rescheduling still requires action from the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) and Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). It is not clear how quickly those changes can be implemented or the barriers they will face in the regulatory process. The administration and Congress also must chart a new path on the hemp loophole after lawmakers effectively closed it in November but left a one-year grace period for enforcement. They must decide how much THC to allow in hemp-derived products and how seriously to continue enforcement of marijuana’s status as a drug illegal under federal law.
• Psychedelics: HHS Secretary Kennedy has floated support for expanding access to psychedelics, and the Trump administration installed a doctor specializing in psychedelic-assisted therapy to a high-level position at the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA). There is also growing support in Congress. There is still a long road before they are regulated, manufactured, and able to be prescribed to the general public, but 2026 could represent a major turning point.
• Opioids: After years of sharp increases, overdose deaths started to level off in 2022 and have declined quickly in years since. Now, the question is whether the decline will continue and whether the decrease is just a return to pre-COVID levels or the beginning of the end of the opioid crisis.