ARPA-H seeks early ibogaine trials as Florida funds no psychedelic research

What is ASCENT-IBO?

ASCENT-IBO stands for "Accelerating Safe Clinical Evaluation of Novel Treatments: Ibogaine for Better Outcomes in Opioid Use Disorder." ARPA-H says it wants "early-stage (Phase 1 and 2) clinical trials of ibogaine for OUD that prioritize patient safety and translation into Phase 3 testing."¹

The agency's case: opioid use disorder affects "more than 5 million Americans," and "more than 75% of people with OUD do not receive treatment." It also says "no active clinical trials with the required federal authorization currently exist to rigorously study ibogaine's safety and effectiveness for OUD in the United States."¹

The opportunity runs through Special Notice ARPA-H-SN-26-158 on SAM.gov. Proposers' Day was September 15, 2026, and solution summaries were requested by October 15. Full proposals are due by deadlines assigned in each applicant's feedback letter, and the page now says the program is "only accepting submissions from applicants who have met previous deadline requirements."¹

How much money is involved, and who gets it?

That isn't public yet. As of November 2, 2026, ARPA-H's program page gives no total budget or award size and names no awardees.¹ The FDA confirmed in an October 6 notice that the Department of Health and Human Services, through ARPA-H, "is funding a program to collect safety and efficacy data through early-phase clinical trials," and that the National Institute on Drug Abuse is funding ibogaine research for opioid use disorder. The notice gives no dollar figures either.²

Don't confuse ASCENT-IBO with a separate $50 million commitment. Executive Order 14401, signed April 18, 2026, directs HHS, through ARPA-H, to "allocate at least $50 million from existing funds to support and partner with State governments that have enacted or are developing programs to advance psychedelic drugs for serious mental illnesses."³ ARPA-H says ASCENT-IBO is "directly aligned with" that order, but the order's $50 million is for partnerships with state governments, and the program page doesn't say whether any of it goes to ASCENT-IBO.¹

What is Texas doing?

Texas passed SB 2308, which sets up a consortium to run FDA drug-development trials of ibogaine for opioid use disorder, co-occurring substance use disorder and other conditions. It was signed June 11, 2025, and took effect immediately.⁴

On December 12, 2025, UTMB Health announced that it and UTHealth Houston had been awarded "$50 million from the Texas Health and Human Services Commission" to lead the program, called Ibogaine Medicine for PTSD, Addiction, and Cognitive Trauma (IMPACT). The release says the grant requires nonstate matching funds equal to the state's investment.⁵

What has Florida funded?

Nothing for psychedelic research in its last three budgets. A full-text search of Florida's enacted appropriations acts for 2024-25, 2025-26 and 2026-27 finds no mention of ibogaine, psilocybin, psychedelics, MDMA or hallucinogens.⁶⁷⁸ The closest items are two ketamine lines in the 2025-26 act: $735,000 for "Controlled Ketamine Therapy for Veterans" and $300,000 for a ketamine depression study in veterans and first responders, which the Governor vetoed.⁷¹¹

Lawmakers have been asked. A February 18, 2025 request sponsored by Sen. Jay Collins sought $3,000,000 for a University of South Florida "Psilocybin Study in Veterans with PTSD"; it isn't in the enacted 2025-26 budget.⁹⁷

Ibogaine is a Schedule I drug in Florida, listed at 893.03(1)(c)18.¹⁰

Why it matters in Miami

The executive order's state money is aimed at states that "have enacted or are developing programs."³ Florida hasn't enacted one, and no 2027 bill on psilocybin, psychedelics or ibogaine has been filed, as our Legislature story reports. Whether Florida enacts or starts developing a program could affect whether the state can partner with ARPA-H for that money.

ASCENT-IBO itself is open to researchers "across academia, industry, and government."¹ ARPA-H hasn't published who applied, so we can't say whether any Florida institution is in the running.