An ARPA-H-funded, 80-person USC trial of psilocybin therapy with and without eight weeks of mindfulness training, announced October 7, 2026. Investigational research, not approval and not legalization.
The University of Southern California (USC) EVIDENT-MAP study is an investigational clinical trial evaluating psilocybin therapy with and without mindfulness training for 80 adults with depression in Los Angeles. It does not make psilocybin legal. USC says it will recruit adults living in Los Angeles who have depression and have no prior experience with psychedelics or meditation; the announcement gives no way to apply yet. Psilocybin remains a Schedule I controlled substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act and is not FDA-approved as a drug product, and nothing in the announcement changes either fact.
The full name of the research project is Evaluation of Integrated Digital, Biomarker and Neurophysiological Tracking in Mindfulness-Assisted Psilocybin Therapy (EVIDENT-MAP). USC announced the initiative on October 7, 2026, through a news release from the Keck School of Medicine of USC. The project received an award of up to $4 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), a federal agency within the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
EVIDENT-MAP is supported through the ARPA-H Evidence-Based Validation & Innovation for Rapid Therapeutics in Behavioral Health (EVIDENT) initiative. Under this initiative, supported research projects contribute de-identified patient data to a secure national repository. The university release notes that views expressed by the study authors do not represent official United States Government policy.
Three principal investigators lead the research team across several university departments. Rael Cahn, MD, PhD, serves as the lead investigator; he is a clinical associate professor of psychiatry and the behavioral sciences at the Keck School of Medicine of USC and directs the USC Center for Mindfulness Science. Assal Habibi, PhD, is an associate professor of psychology at the Brain and Creativity Institute within USC Dornsife, and Shrikanth Narayanan, PhD, is a University Professor at USC.
The USC news release notes that psilocybin therapy has shown promise for conditions such as depression and substance use disorder. In 2019, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) granted breakthrough therapy designation to psilocybin-based treatment for major depressive disorder, opening doors to expanded clinical depression treatment research.
The EVIDENT-MAP study design splits 80 participants into two study arms to evaluate whether adding an eight-week mindfulness meditation course changes the clinical outcomes of psilocybin therapy. Half of the participants receive psilocybin therapy alone, while the other half receive psilocybin therapy alongside meditation training. Researchers designed this comparison to test whether the two may have a synergistic effect.
Every patient enrolled in the trial completes two psilocybin sessions scheduled roughly one month apart. Before taking the first dose, participants complete six hours of preparatory psychotherapy. The treatment timeline includes three integration sessions between the two drug administrations and three additional integration sessions after completing the second dosing appointment.
Therapists adopt a non-directive clinical role during active psilocybin sessions. Rather than guiding participants with structured conversational therapy, the clinician serves as a supportive and attuned presence in the room. Cahn explained that the team moves away from standard approaches to psychotherapy that tend to be structured and guided.
Participants assigned to the meditation arm complete an eight-week training program focused on mindful awareness, loving kindness, and compassion. This intervention requires participants to complete daily meditation practice at home alongside their guided instruction. The first psilocybin dosing session occurs between weeks two and three of the meditation schedule.
Cahn and the investigative team hypothesize that pairing meditation with psychedelic therapy helps individuals with depression better integrate personal insights and sustain clinical improvements over time. The release adds that previous studies of experienced meditators suggest meditation may enhance a person’s response to psychedelics.
The dosing sessions incorporate a specialized music program developed by Habibi in partnership with clinicians and music therapists. The resulting playlist contains lyric-free music drawn from multiple musical traditions, timed to align with the progression of psilocybin’s effects. A highly emotional piece plays during the period of peak intensity.
Following treatment completion, researchers collect MRI scans while patients listen to the identical musical playlist. The team will use these scans to determine whether they can detect a brain signal linked to the therapeutic effects of the experience. Habibi said the team is interested in whether the same music could have therapeutic use in future without psychedelics.
Researchers track participant biology and behavior using multiple digital and clinical collection tools. The protocol gathers EEG and MRI brain recordings. Staff also collect saliva, blood, and stool samples, psychological and cognitive assessments, and data from wearable trackers.
The release describes the planned participants as adults living in Los Angeles who have depression and do not have experience with psychedelics or meditation.
Participants are assigned to one of the two arms described in the study design section above.
The initial announcement from the Keck School of Medicine of USC does not list a public phone number, recruitment email address, or patient intake form. The release therefore gives no route to apply for screening. Readers interested in research opportunities can watch the Keck School of Medicine of USC newsroom for future recruitment notices, or consult our directory on how to find a clinical trial.
The EVIDENT-MAP trial announcement publishes no dose or psilocybin product, no start or enrolment-open date, no completion date, and no registry number. USC has not yet released preliminary patient findings, and the release publishes no results. A search of ClinicalTrials.gov conducted on October 8, 2026, found no registered record for EVIDENT-MAP.
The study announcement does not disclose the specific drug formulation or the precise milligram dose of psilocybin administered during the two sessions. The release publishes no dose or psilocybin product. USC also has not published an official launch date for patient screening or an estimated completion date for study wrap-up.
EVIDENT-MAP builds on an ongoing USC study that has so far tested psilocybin and mindfulness training in 24 people with no mental health issues. Cahn explained that the preliminary trial yielded encouraging early results, with many participants describing their session as one of the most meaningful experiences of their lives months later. However, that prior study enrolled only participants with no mental health issues.
No results exist yet, so whether psilocybin therapy plus mindfulness helps people with depression is untested.
EVIDENT-MAP tests psilocybin therapy inside a federally funded research study, which is different from approval or legal availability, and it does not alter the controlled legal status of psilocybin. Psilocybin remains classified as a Schedule I substance under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
The FDA has not approved psilocybin as a manufactured drug product for depression or any other medical indication. Psilocybin used in research is investigational. For related guidance on how the FDA treats psychedelic trials, see the FDA psychedelic clinical trial guidance.
Federal clinical research operates independently from state-level psilocybin reform programs. Oregon and Colorado have separate state-regulated psilocybin programs that are not FDA approval. You can review regional policies across different jurisdictions using our legal status by state tool and our general psilocybin guide.
For analysis of related research, see our guide on the VA psilocybin study. Readers can review our resource on psilocybin for depression.
Check the clinical trial search tool to monitor registered psychedelic research sites accepting patient applications.
The USC EVIDENT-MAP study is an 80-person clinical trial evaluating whether pairing psilocybin therapy with an eight-week mindfulness meditation course improves depression outcomes. Funded by an award of up to $4 million from ARPA-H, the trial compares psilocybin alone against psilocybin with meditation while collecting neuroimaging, digital wearable, and biological data.
Eligibility is limited to adults living in Los Angeles who have depression and have no prior experience with psychedelics or meditation. The release gives no application route yet.
No, the EVIDENT-MAP study does not make psilocybin legal. Psilocybin remains an unapproved Schedule I controlled substance under the Controlled Substances Act.
Psilocybin is not approved by the FDA as a medical treatment for depression or any other health condition. While the FDA granted breakthrough therapy designation to psilocybin for major depressive disorder in 2019, its use as a treatment remains investigational.
Researchers hypothesize that mindfulness training helps patients with depression integrate therapeutic insights and sustain clinical symptom improvements after dosing sessions. Earlier studies in experienced meditators suggest that meditation practice may enhance participant responsiveness to psychedelic substances.
USC has not published an estimated study completion date or a schedule for reporting trial results. A search of ClinicalTrials.gov on October 8, 2026 found no matching record for EVIDENT-MAP.
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