LOUISVILLE, Ky. — The Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission is considering a proposal to distribute $42 million.

On Monday, the commission heard from experts on a treatment drug called Ibogaine.

Angela Parkerson shared her story during the meeting on how she lost her son.

“He was 24 years old. He had never suffered from a substance use disorder. He was what I guess a lot of people call a recreational user who was impacted by the shutdown in 2020,” Parkerson said.

The Kentucky mom shared how she lost her son in a span of six short months after his first interaction with opioids to the Kentucky Opioid Abatement Advisory Commission.

“My question to all of you is, ‘What, if anything, would you be willing to do to save someone like my child?’” Parkerson asked.

She’s hoping for more educational awareness surrounding opioids.

During the meeting Monday, the commission heard from experts and clinicians about the treatment drug, Ibogaine. 

“They take it in a single day on their full medical monitor and then they’re released. The next day they’re up and ready to go,” said Dr. Deborah Mash with the University of Miami.

She said it’s helped people with opioid use disorder by using the plant-based substance to treat addiction.

“So you can imagine in the setting of a clinical trial that this could be done in the hospital inpatient setting, where they’d be stabilized, they would be administered the drug and then they would be allowed to recover for the next few days and then they’re ready to be released,” Mash explained.

The panelists explained to the commission existing scientific data and current research studies into Ibogaine therapy as a treatment for addiction, as well as the risks and success rates compared to other treatments.

The opioid commission is considering a proposal to distribute funds of $42 million over six years toward the research.