AtaiBeckley’s MDMA EMP-01 targets social anxiety; psychedelics policy updates include Compass trigger bills and Georgia HB 717

MDMA developer AtaiBeckley reports preliminary Phase 2a results for EMP-01, an R-MDMA-only formulation, as a potential treatment for social anxiety disorder. In the UK trial, 69 adults received EMP-01 or placebo with a second identical dose four weeks later, without psychotherapy. After the second dose, participants showed clinically meaningful symptom improvement on a social anxiety scale, though results are not yet peer-reviewed and the mechanism is discussed in terms of R-MDMA versus S-MDMA differences. The newsletter also covers U.S. policy and research movement: HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. discusses psychedelics on Joe Rogan’s show, West Virginia and South Dakota pass psilocybin “trigger” bills tied to FDA approval of Compass’s COMP360, and Georgia’s HB 717 is rejected then reconsidered, with debate focused on regulation of psychedelic-assisted clinics including ketamine clinics.