This bill adds two new sections to chapter 28B.20 RCW and creates a legal requirement directing the University of Washington to conduct a prospective, randomized cohort study over three years. The study must compare ibogaine-assisted therapy delivered through a licensed clinic in Mexico followed by structured therapeutic support against "treatment as usual" (defined in the bill as medication-assisted treatment and psychotherapy) for adults diagnosed with opioid use disorder. The bill specifies outcomes the study must measure, including treatment engagement, reduction in opioid use, mortality, functional status, craving, motivation to change, and self-efficacy, and requires use of toxicology, standard scales, and other credible research techniques. The bill’s findings describe ibogaine as a naturally occurring psychoactive substance found in the Tabernanthe iboga plant. Affected parties named include the University of Washington, licensed clinics in Mexico, and adults with opioid use disorder. This is a procedural legal change creating a new research mandate (new statutory sections) rather than creating a new crime or changing penalties. Important details are not specified in the extracted text: funding or appropriation for the study, specific study design elements (sample size, inclusion/exclusion criteria, randomization method), exact start or end dates beyond the three-year duration, oversight or ethical review procedures, cross-border regulatory compliance, reporting or data-sharing requirements, and operational treatment protocols. The bill was prefiled 01/09/25, read first time 01/13/25, designated Senate Bill 5204 (S-0455.2), and referred to the Committee on Health & Long-Term Care.

If enacted, the University of Washington would be required to run a three-year prospective, randomized cohort study comparing ibogaine-assisted therapy delivered through licensed clinics in Mexico (followed by structured therapeutic support) to current U.S. standard care of medication-assisted treatment plus psychotherapy for adults with opioid use disorder. Practically that means UW must organize participant recruitment, randomization, toxicology testing, and standard clinical scales to measure engagement, opioid use, mortality, functioning, craving, motivation, and self-efficacy, and coordinate care with Mexican clinics to deliver the ibogaine intervention. The groups most affected are the University of Washington (new research responsibility and likely new costs), the Mexican clinics named to deliver ibogaine treatment (new clinical role), and adults with opioid use disorder who could be recruited into the trial. The bill does not specify funding, detailed study design, oversight or how cross‑border legal and safety issues (including cardiac safety concerns noted in the findings) will be handled, so UW would likely need to secure external funding and resolve regulatory and ethical logistics before the study can start.