Joe Rogan pushed a controversial addiction treatment into the center of U.S. policymaking by bringing a national health crisis directly to President Donald J. Trump and backing it with urgency, data and a direct appeal.
At a White House news conference, Rogan said he had sent Trump information highlighting the scale of the nation’s opioid crisis. He said more than 80,000 people died of overdoses in 2024 and that more than 5 million Americans are currently addicted to opioids, calling the figures “horrible.”
He paired those figures with a proposed solution, pointing to ibogaine, a psychoactive substance being studied as an addiction treatment. Rogan cited reported outcomes to argue for its potential impact. “With one dose of ibogaine, more than 80% of people are free of that addiction. With two doses, it’s more than 90%.”
Rogan said he sent that information directly to Trump, and the president vowed to expedite it.
“If these turn out to be as good as people are saying, it’s going to have a tremendous impact on this country and other countries, too,” Trump said.
The opioid crisis remains one of the deadliest ongoing public health issues in the United States, with tens of thousands of overdose deaths recorded each year and millions affected by addiction.
Federal regulators are already reviewing psychedelic-assisted therapies in clinical trials, with some receiving breakthrough therapy designation for conditions such as PTSD and depression. Ibogaine remains unapproved and classified as a controlled substance, but it continues to draw attention in research and advocacy discussions about addiction treatment.
