Incannex Healthcare Prepares To Launch Psychedelics Clinics Via New Subsidiary

Australia-based biopharma giant Incannex Healthcare Ltd. IXHL has plans to commercialize its psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy business through a new subsidiary venture under the leadership of long-standing company director Peter Widdows.

Widdows explained that Incannex initially intended to use ketamine therapy with the possibility of expanding into psilocybin therapy for Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD) as regulations allowed; but after the Australian Therapy Goods Administration (TGA)’s announcement of the down-scheduling of MDMA for PTSD and psilocybin for TRD, the company set to expand its plans to cover these treatments. Widdows added that TGA’s decision is both “an amazing opportunity to do some good for humankind” as well as “a great business opportunity, with a market that is predicted to mature into a multi-billion-dollar industry segment.”

Incannex CEO Joel Latham affirmed that the opportunity “presents a pivotal point” in the company’s journey by turning from pure research into service delivery, but assured that the new business implementation “will not have an impact on the development of our core clinical assets” and will be run as an Incannex-owned subsidiary in parallel. 

The new subsidiary company will see its board of directors comprised by: 

• Incannex co-founder, director and chief scientific officer Dr. Paul Liknaitzky said he believes in the utmost importance of “the safe, useful, and ethical translation of clinical psychedelic research into practice” after leading several psychedelic trials as well as developing trial protocols and coordination, treatment design and therapist selection and training, and establishing collaborations with an extensive network of international experts and organizations. 

• Co-founder, director, chief medical officer and head of psychiatry Prof. Suresh Sundram, a fellow of the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists said “providing a custom-tailored environment in order to deliver the best possible therapeutic experience is critical.” 

• Sean O’Carroll, co-founder, director and head of psychotherapy with extensive experience in both developing and delivering psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy training for clinical research teams and working with what he calls “psychedelic casualties,” said, “those of us who have the experience and expertise in this field feel a responsibility to contribute to the best possible care and provide a benchmark for safe and ethical practice.”

• The company is at an advanced stage of negotiations over riverfront premises in Melbourne, with this first “model” clinic expected to open before the end of 2023, following which Incannex expects to begin rapid expansion within Australia and overseas.

Photo: Benzinga edit with photo by geralt on Pixabay.