Arizona's 2025 law funding $5 million in ibogaine research at state universities, focused on veterans with treatment-resistant PTSD and opioid use disorder.
Arizona HB 2871 is a research-funding law that appropriates $5 million in state money to pay for a certified clinical study of ibogaine in veterans. The Arizona Legislature passed it during its 2025 session, and the Arizona Department of Health Services (ADHS) distributes the funds through the Arizona Biomedical Research Centre (ABRC).
The $5 million in state money must be matched dollar-for-dollar by the grant recipient. That means every project funded under this law has at least $10 million total to run phase one, two, and/or three clinical trials. The matching requirement is not a suggestion — an institution that cannot demonstrate a $5 million private commitment is ineligible for the award.
The funding runs for five years from the award date and is exempt from lapsing. That matters for long-running phase 2 or phase 3 trials, which can take several years to enroll and complete. State appropriations that lapse mid-study would stall enrollment, so the exemption is a meaningful operational detail.
State Representative Justin Wilmeth (R-Phoenix) introduced HB 2871 in February 2025. Wilmeth cited the veteran suicide crisis, saying every day veterans are lost to PTSD and traumatic brain injuries and that current treatment options are not working. Former U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema testified before the House Appropriations Committee and pledged to raise $5 million in private funding to match the state's investment.
Only one type of institution can receive the HB 2871 grant: an Arizona-based organization with a documented history of neurological disease research, a neurosurgery program, and the ability to commit $5 million in matching funds. The statute sets four eligibility criteria, all of which must be met.
The four statutory requirements are:
These criteria effectively limit eligibility to major academic medical centers in Arizona. The ABRC issued its Request for Grant Applications (RFGA 2026-006) in October 2025, with the application window closing November 19, 2025.
Principal investigators must hold an independent research position equivalent to NIH R01 eligibility and must reside in Arizona. The lead institution must hold DEA Schedule I researcher registration and maintain FDA Investigational New Drug (IND) authorization for the duration of the study. IRB approval is also required at all times — the trial cannot pause that oversight even between enrollment cohorts.
Indirect costs are capped at 10% of total direct costs per year, which is low compared to standard NIH overhead rates. Manuscript preparation fees are allowed but capped at $9,000 per manuscript — a detail that rarely appears in news coverage of the bill but matters for institutions building research infrastructure around the grant.
The statute directs the study toward ibogaine as a treatment for neurological diseases, specifically naming traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). These are the two conditions most frequently cited in veteran suicide research and the ones Wilmeth highlighted in the House Appropriations Committee.
The law does not list opioid use disorder as a named indication, which is the primary focus of the Texas ibogaine program. Arizona's mandate sits closer to the neurological and psychiatric injury model — examining how ibogaine may repair damage from combat trauma — rather than the addiction-interruption model that dominated earlier ibogaine research. This is a meaningful difference in scientific framing, not just political emphasis.
The funded trials may run at phase one, two, or three level. Phase one trials test safety and dosing. Phase two tests efficacy. Phase three trials generate the controlled data the FDA needs for approval. The law allows funding across all three stages, giving the recipient flexibility to start at whatever phase their preclinical work supports.
Every trial funded under HB 2871 must comply with FDA safety protocols because ibogaine carries a well-documented risk of QT-interval prolongation — an electrical disturbance in the heart that can trigger fatal arrhythmia. This is the primary reason ibogaine remains Schedule I: the cardiac risk profile made FDA approval impossible without controlled trial data on mitigation protocols.
The FDA IND requirement in the statute is the mechanism for managing this risk. Any IND application for ibogaine must include a cardiac safety monitoring plan, typically involving electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) screening before dosing, continuous cardiac monitoring during the session, and magnesium pre-treatment, which has been shown in some protocols to reduce QT risk.
The law does not specify a cardiac safety protocol by name — it leaves that to the FDA and the institution's IRB. But every institution applying for the grant must build a compliant protocol into their trial design before the IND is issued. No IND means no grant, so cardiac safety screening is baked into eligibility even without an explicit statutory requirement. For more on ibogaine's cardiac profile, see the ibogaine guide.
Arizona and Texas are the two states that committed dedicated state funding for ibogaine clinical trials in 2025. They share a veteran focus and a state-funding mechanism, but their scale, structure, and therapeutic framing differ in important ways. The table below compares them directly.
| Feature | Arizona HB 2871 | Texas SB 2308 |
|---|---|---|
| State appropriation | $5 million | $50 million |
| Total budget (with match) | $10 million (1:1 private match required) | Up to $100 million (public-private consortium) |
| Model | Single-institution academic grant | Multi-organization consortium across the state |
| Primary indication | TBI and PTSD in veterans | Opioid use disorder, mental health broadly |
| Recipient eligibility | One Arizona institution with neurosurgery program | Organizations capable of FDA-supervised studies statewide |
| Cardiac safety protocol | Required via FDA IND (protocol left to institution) | Required via FDA IND (IMPACT consortium model) |
| Sponsor | Rep. Justin Wilmeth (R) | Senator Charles Perry (R) |
| Status | Signed — ABRC grant application closed Nov 2025 | Signed — IMPACT consortium forming |
When Arizona's model fits better: if you are an Arizona-based academic medical center with neurosurgery capacity and a TBI or PTSD research focus. The single- institution structure means less coordination overhead and a cleaner chain of command for the trial.
When Texas's model fits better: if you want to run multiple concurrent trials across a broader population or target opioid use disorder specifically. Texas's consortium model allows several institutions to participate and share data. For the Texas breakdown, see the Texas SB 2308 guide.
Ibogaine is a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act — the same schedule as heroin and LSD. Arizona state law cannot change that. HB 2871 does not reschedule ibogaine, decriminalize it for personal use, or allow any treatment outside a federally authorized clinical trial.
The law works within federal law, not around it. Every trial it funds needs a DEA Schedule I researcher license and an FDA IND. The state's role is to write the check; the FDA and DEA still control what happens in the lab. For the full picture of what psychedelics are legally available where, see the guide to what psychedelics are legal in the US and the legal status by state tool.
What HB 2871 does accomplish is building the evidence base that could eventually support an FDA rescheduling petition. If phase two and phase three trials funded under this law show strong safety and efficacy data, the FDA could approve ibogaine as a prescription drug — and Schedule I status would become untenable. Arizona is betting $5 million that those trials will produce that data. The NDAA psychedelics provision and the legalization tracker cover the broader federal movement.
Arizona HB 2871 appropriates $5 million from the state general fund to the Arizona Department of Health Services to fund a certified clinical research study on ibogaine for veterans with PTSD and traumatic brain injury. The recipient must match the state's $5 million with at least $5 million from private or non-state sources, creating a $10 million total trial budget.
No. HB 2871 is a research-funding law, not a decriminalization measure. Ibogaine remains a Schedule I controlled substance under federal law and is illegal for personal use in Arizona. The law only funds supervised clinical research under FDA authorization.
The grant can only go to an Arizona-based institution that has a proven history of neurological disease research, a neurosurgery program with advanced facilities, and the ability to match the state's $5 million with private funding. The Arizona Biomedical Research Centre (ABRC) administers the grant application process.
Texas SB 2308 committed $50 million to a public-private consortium to fund multiple FDA-authorized ibogaine trials across the state. Arizona HB 2871 targets $5 million (matched to $10 million total) to a single Arizona institution for clinical research. Texas focuses on opioid use disorder and mental health broadly; Arizona emphasizes PTSD and TBI in veterans.
The law targets neurological diseases specifically including traumatic brain injury (TBI) and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The focus on veterans reflects sponsor Rep. Justin Wilmeth's stated concern over veteran suicide rates tied to those conditions.
Arizona HB 2871 was sponsored by state Representative Justin Wilmeth (R-Phoenix). It passed the Senate Committee on Health Services 10-0 in March 2025. Former U.S. Senator Kyrsten Sinema testified in support and pledged to raise $5 million in private matching funds.
Arizona and Texas are not the only states moving on ibogaine. Our legalization tracker shows every active bill, its current status, and when key votes are scheduled.
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