Britain is considering reclassifying the anaesthetic ketamine as a class A drug as illegal use skyrockets to record levels, officials say.
Ketamine, taken by billionaire Elon Musk to control his moods, is currently a class B substance, but Ministers say they are seeking “expert advice” on reclassification after an estimated 299 000 people reported using the drug in 2023.
Musk has described using small amounts of ketamine “once every other week” to manage the “chemical tides” that cause depression, reports The Guardian.
Dame Diana Johnson, the policing Minister, will write to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) asking whether its classification should be changed and “carefully consider” its findings.
Recent reports cited by the Home Office suggest the substance is often found in “pink cocaine”, a synthetic cocktail of drugs.
The call for its reclassification came from a Manchester coroner after a man died of sepsis from a kidney infection that was “a complication of long-term use of ketamine”.
The drug is licensed in Britain as an anaesthetic and for pain relief for short-term use but is not available on prescription on the NHS.
A version of ketamine has a licence for use to halt depression.
There has been a dramatic increase in the use of ketamine in the US, with the expansion of ketamine clinics and online services offering easy prescription access to the drug, as well as an unregulated market.
See more from MedicalBrief archives:
Ketamine use soars after opioid crackdown despite little research, regulation
Ketamine better than ECT for depression – Harvard study
Ketamine for the treatment of mental health and substance use disorders – Meta-analysis