DEA will maintain Schedule I status for psilocybin and MDMA throughout 2026.

The DEA (the US agency that controls which drugs are legal and how strictly) keeps psilocybin and MDMA on its most-restricted list, Schedule I, meaning they're treated the same as heroin — no accepted medical use, no prescriptions. This matters because until the FDA (the US drug regulator) approves a specific drug product, the DEA has no legal trigger to move these substances off that list. Real people hoping to access these treatments through normal healthcare channels will have to wait longer.

No FDA-approved product exists to trigger rescheduling. Absent an approval, DEA has no statutory mandate or administrative pathway to reclassify either substance within this calendar year.