Multiple legislative contacts tell WeedPress the bill that passed the House 84-6 last year to allow psilocybin mushrooms is being reworked. House File 978 is an Iowa bill to implement psilocybin regulation at the state level to create a state-regulated psilocybin program despite ongoing federal prohibition. HF 978, which passed the House 84-6, would establish a licensing program with clinical oversight for psilocybin treatments, including for PTSD.
The Governor had vetoed an inferior version of psilocybin synthetic medicine that passed the House and Senate but said during the veto she wasn’t denying the meritorious arguments for psilocybin but wanted a better more deliberate bill with big picture staying power:
Governor Reynolds vetoed HF 383 in June 2025, saying it surrendered too much regulatory authority to federal officials.
Read: Iowa lawmaker who supports medicinal mushrooms cheers veto of psilocybin bill
Because that veto reflects process concerns rather than outright rejection of policy goals, lawmakers continue refining the language. Here’s why.
Republicans don’t vote on bills unless they know ahead of time they are likely to pass approval through both chambers and the Governor. There’s not enough time to waste on bills that won’t go anywhere. So the 84-6 vote in 2025 wasn’t grandstanding. It means the psilocybin medical bill has legs.
What likely then happened is this: conversations took place about how to make the bill better so it would be less likely to be vetoed. And now, that would explain why the House is reworking the 45 page bill.
Background
House File 978 passed the house 84-6 with 10 absent in 2025. Companion Bills to HF 978 are:
A bill for an act relating to the production of psilocybin and the administration of psilocybin to persons with post-traumatic stress disorder, and providing penalties.(See HF 978.)
A bill for an act relating to the production and administration of psilocybin and providing penalties.
Psilocybin has gained popularity amongst Iowa lawmakers:
📌 Representative John Wills, who served in the Iowa National Guard for 25 years, told an Iowa House subcommittee that he would never have sponsored a psilocybin bill if not for his experience attending a PTSD conference in Denver, Colorado.
At that conference, Wills said he became convinced that psilocybin can be an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder — citing peer-reviewed research showing high success rates (he referenced “82-85% of the time” in some contexts) and the potential to help veterans who otherwise rely on traditional psychiatric medications that don’t work well for many.
Because of what he learned there, Wills sponsored a bill to establish a state-regulated psilocybin program in Iowa similar to the state’s medical marijuana framework.
When the new language for this year’s psilocybin legislation goes public WeedPress will show what changed from the old bill that passed 84-6 to the new bill. Sources say the revisions being considered are currently unknown, for example, clinical standards or licensing details.
Until then, the fact there is reported work being spent on the bill means a lot. The prediction that 2026 would see a rise in psychedelic use tracks here.
Update 1/18/2026: new changes in new language:
- Removed word “stress” five times
- Removed language about PTSD
WeedPress: The Paper Trail 
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