Could a legislative bill hold the key to treating veterans battling PTSD?

Just days ago, Matthew Butler — a Utah native and a retired U.S. Army Special Forces officer — celebrated his father’s 84th birthday at his parents’ Summit County home.

It was a fun family gathering — and, for him, significant.

“But what is significant is that the celebration took place in the same home where I was arrested (years earlier),” Butler told the House Health and Human Services Committee last week.

Butler’s haunting memory of being handcuffed and led out of his parents’ home was shared during his testimony in support of House Bill 390 — a proposed legislative measure calling for intensive local research into psychedelic-assisted therapy for combat veterans with PTSD such as Butler who have found little success with traditional treatment.

HB390 has bipartisan sponsorship from Rep. Jennifer Dailey-Provost, D-Salt Lake City, and Sen. Kirk Cullimore, R-Draper.

Following the bill presentation, committee members unanimously approved forwarding HB390 to the House Floor.

A former Boy Scout, Latter-day Saint returned missionary and Weber State University graduate, Butler spoke of serving six deployments with Army Special Operations. He logged 40 months of combat over the course of his military career.

But Butler was a broken man when he returned to his home state in 2018.

“Before retiring, I had been diagnosed with alcoholism, drug addiction, treatment-resistant depression, PTSD and suicidal ideation,” he told the lawmakers.

“By Father’s Day of that year, I was going through my third divorce and was estranged from my children. My life was full of rage.”

During a visit to his parents’ home, a disagreement ensued, escalating into violence.

“My father made the hardest decision of his life that day — he had me arrested,” said Butler. “I was charged with destruction of property during a domestic disturbance and taken to the Summit County Jail.”

He can’t forget seeing his mother sobbing in the family garage while watching her son being loaded into a patrol car.

Butler would make a life-altering decision while sitting in a jail cell. “I had to end that cycle of insanity — doing the same thing over and over and over again, and expecting a different result."

The combat veteran had tried the traditional treatments for his PTSD — including antidepressants, counseling, group therapy and anger management courses.

“But despite all of those efforts, nothing made a difference and my life continued to spiral out of control.

“I had a total of 12 restraining orders on me, and I was well-known by local law enforcement.”

Knowing drastic changes were in order, Butler began researching alternative PTSD treatments. He learned of a psychedelic called ayahuasca — a plant native to the Amazon regions of South America.

He said this discovery proved life-changing.

“I can say with absolute certainty that I owe my life, my happiness and my sobriety, and, most of all, the mended relationships with my family to that ayahuasca ceremony weekend and the careful and occasional use of other psychedelics.”

But the therapy utilized by Butler is not generally available in the United States because ayahuasca and similar psychedelics are classified as Schedule I controlled substances.

Seeing the possible benefits of psychedelic-assisted therapy for certain veterans, HB390’s sponsors are calling for a protocol-guided clinical study on the safety and feasibility of psychedelic-assisted therapy for treatment-resistant veterans such as Butler and many more.

The proposed research would take place at the University of Utah’s Huntsman Mental Health Institute (HMHI) and adhere to state and federal regulations — while observing defined procedures for participant safety, informed consent and drug administration.

An article published by the Association of American Medical Colleges says studies have shown positive and negative reactions to psychedelic treatments, and that patients typically do better if they are receiving therapy as part of the intervention.

“The need for a high level of hands-on therapeutic attention highlights the drawbacks of drug-induced psychedelic episodes: Their effects can be unpredictable and are potentially dangerous without proper support, and thus require significant time to administer by trained staff,” according to the article’s author, Patrick Boyle.

Responding to PTSD’s risks with science, rigor

Rep. Dailey-Provost calls HB390 “the next logical and positive iteration of a process that was started a couple years ago by the Utah Legislature recognizing that there is a potential for medical benefit in psychedelics.”

The lawmaker said psychedelics are now being researched both nationally and locally.

Meanwhile, the need for such treatment, she said, is crucial in a state where an alarming number of veterans are suffering from PTSD.

Utah’s suicide crisis, added Dailey-Provost, is especially acute.

“Our average veteran suicide rate in the state of Utah, per 100,000, is 71.6 compared to the national veteran average of 34.7.”

Society struggles in making meaningful strides in treating mental health challenges such as treatment-resistant PTSD, she said.

“We can make a difference in people’s lives for the better — and I think we have an obligation to help as many people in as many ways as we can.”

Dr. Ben Lewis — an HMHI professor who works with adults with severe and treatment-resistant PTSD — also spoke at the committee hearing.

The doctor testified that “cautious, rigorous evaluation and staged evidence development” is essential prior to any clinical psychedelic treatment rollouts.

“HB390 represents a thoughtful and science-forward approach,” he said. “Rather than authorizing clinical programs, it authorizes a tightly scoped, time-limited research trial under explicit legislative guardrails — alongside oversight by the FDA, the DEA and our institutional IRB (review board) to generate Utah-specific safety and outcomes data.”

The bill, added Lewis, “is not about public access, legalization, clinical rollout or commercialization.”

The Beehive State is an apt locale for the sort of research called for by HB390, Lewis said.

Utah has one of the largest veteran catchment areas in the nation.

Meanwhile, he said, PTSD is a chronic, often debilitating condition that’s estimated to affect 12% to 15% of combat veterans. It’s associated with significant medical, economic and social costs — as well as multiple comorbidities in veterans.

“PTSD is also associated with an increased risk of suicidal ideation and suicide completion,” said Lewis.

The doctor said he works frequently with military veterans with PTSD. Many are in need of alternative treatment.

Conducted under rigorous oversight, the psychedelic research outlined by HB390 would combine a drug administration with a psychotherapeutic protocol in line with current safety and efficacy recommendations for psychedelic interventions, added Lewis.

Meanwhile, the proposed research would function with a $2 million budget, while also accepting and securing outside donations, said Lewis.

“State support is the state of Utah positioning itself as a leader in this space — committed to tackling veteran mental health, with Utah being home to one of the largest veteran catchments in the nation,” said Lewis.

“The collaboration with the University of Utah demonstrates priority on scientific integrity and safeguards.”

Dr. Michael Warden, a Utah psychiatrist and expert on psychedelic and ketamine initiatives, also spoke in support of HB390.

“It is responsible, it is limited, and it is actionable,” said Dr. Warden, who added the proposed research represents “a profound, emerging opportunity to treat some of the most difficult conditions we treat.”

Why is HB390 drawing attention outside Utah?

Logan Davidson is the legislative director at VETS, a national veteran service organization which believes access to psychedelic-assisted therapies could end the veteran suicide epidemic.

VETS provides grants for veterans to receive such treatments in countries where it’s legal.

“The passage of HB390 would place Utah at the forefront of veteran mental health innovation, building upon successful initiatives in other states,” Davidson said during the committee hearing.

Davidson later told the Deseret News that he appreciates the bill’s research flexibility to study a variety of compounds. Additionally, the proposed research prioritizes veterans.

Veterans are often excluded from clinical research due to screening processes that rule out people with comorbidities or certain conditions that are common in the veteran community, noted Davidson.

“(HB390) ensures that a population that critically needs care is able to access it,” he said. “And while they’re getting that care, all of that research and data is collected and then transmitted so that we can better understand how to safely and effectively provide this treatment.”

A veteran’s psychedelic-assisted therapy experience

Combat veteran Kyle Bingham is a Box Elder County native who joined the Army in 2002.

While still a teenager, he was deployed in Iraq. During one mission, several roadside bombs detonated on the vehicle he was driving while under fire.

Bingham survived — “but that day changed me,” he told the legislative committee.

“Like many soldiers, I learned rules for survival — rules that were internalized, forgotten and carried home,” he said.

“For me, PTSD is what happens when rules made to survive combat are brought into civilian life where they no longer belong.

“Those rules shaped my reactions, my relationships and my sense of safety. Long after the war ended, combat began to feel more familiar than peace.”

After becoming a Green Beret and serving multiple deployments, Bingham was medically retired in 2016. But the trauma remained — and traditional therapy did little to help.

“It felt like trying to extinguish an inferno with a bucket.”

Bingham received a VETS grant to receive psychedelic-assisted therapy in Mexico.

“I could not fully put into words what that experience gave me, he said.

“What I can say is this: It allowed me to reconcile with the weight I had been carrying for decades. It gave me lasting relief, clarity and the ability to move forward.

“This treatment did not erase my past — it gave me my life back.”