New York Mets owner and billionaire Steve Cohen is donating $5 million to make mind-altering psychedelic drugs mainstream for medical use.
The amount was donated by the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation, an organization created by the hedge fund billionaire to inspire people across many industries and benefit the community. For example, the foundation touts the compound psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, for its purported positive and long-lasting effects on some of the most debilitating and chronic medical conditions, including addiction, anxiety, and severe depression.
Financial support for psychedelics
The foundation donated the money to MAPS, the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies. The San Jose, California-based organization is urging the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to approve MDMA for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder.
If the mind-altering drug is approved, MAPS has pledged to create a patient fund that will give those in need access to MDMA and other psychedelics. The available $5 million will be used for this fund. If not, the money will serve as a grant to support the work of MAPS.
The Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation ranks as one of the largest private funders of psychedelic research in the country, donating nearly $19 million to projects related to hallucinogenic drugs.
Source: NYpost.com (EN)
