New psilocybin therapy program aims to help veterans in Central Oregon

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- Drop Thesis, a licensed psilocybin service center in Bend, Ore., has partnered with the Returning Veterans Project to launch The Path Forward Program. The initiative allows local and regional businesses to sponsor psilocybin-assisted therapy for military veterans in Central Oregon at no cost to the veteran.

The partnership addresses financial barriers that often prevent veterans from accessing emerging mental health treatments. Under the program, tax-deductible corporate sponsorships routed through the Returning Veterans Project cover a veteran's entire treatment process, including preparation, a guided psilocybin experience at Drop Thesis and structured integration support.

Gary Bracelin, founder and partner at Drop Thesis, explained that the program was created to expand access to mental health care regardless of a patient's financial situation.

“We started Drop Thesis because we watched this work change lives and as we've grown, we see how veterans need a way to access this kind of support that doesn't depend on their ability to pay,” Bracelin said. “Partnering with RVP means we're not just offering a service, we're offering a real path forward, backed by an organization veterans already know and trust.”

The program arrives alongside expanding clinical research into the efficacy of psilocybin for military personnel. A pilot clinical trial from The Ohio State University's Center for Psychedelic Drug Research and Education, published in July 2026 in Communications Medicine, found that 75% of veterans with severe, treatment-resistant PTSD were in full remission one month after receiving psilocybin-assisted therapy, with no serious adverse events reported. Shorthand for post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD remains a central focus of emerging psychedelic research.

Additionally, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs has launched a multi-site study titled PIVOT, enrolling at least 240 veterans across five VA medical centers through 2031 to study psilocybin intervention for treatment-resistant depression.

The Returning Veterans Project has operated since 2005 as a nonprofit connecting veterans, service members and their families across Oregon and Southwest Washington to free health services. Amy Almond-Schmid, executive director of the Returning Veterans Project, said the effort provides an alternative option for care.

“Veterans should have options for care, both within and parallel to the traditional system,” Almond-Schmid said. “This partnership gives us another meaningful tool to offer the veterans who come to us looking for something that can help. Since 2005, RVP has worked to remove the barriers, including cost, stigma and access, that keep veterans from the healing they deserve. This partnership is a natural extension of that mission.”

Program operations divide administrative and clinical duties between the two organizations. The Returning Veterans Project determines veteran eligibility and manages charitable funds, while Drop Thesis provides clinical care from initial preparation through final integration. Sam Gross, a therapist, licensed psilocybin facilitator at Drop Thesis and U.S. Army veteran, will help lead clinical care for the program.

“As both a therapist and a veteran, I understand how important trust, choice and feeling understood can be when someone is considering a new approach to their mental health,” Gross said. “What excites me about The Path Forward Program is that it gives veterans another option and removes cost from the equation. Being able to support fellow veterans through that process, both clinically and as someone who has worn the uniform myself, is incredibly meaningful to me.”

Drop Thesis opened its facility in downtown Bend in 2023 as a state-licensed psilocybin service center. Since its inception in 2005, the Returning Veterans Project has served more than 5,200 individuals by connecting them with a regional network of licensed volunteer health providers.