December 21st, 2017 by WCBC Radio

America’s worsening opioid epidemic is prompting calls for a serious look at a form of therapy some people say helped them overcome their addiction when all else failed. Delegate Wendell Beitzel has been looking into the matter. The treatment revolves around ibogaine, a plant-derived substance that long has been used in African shamanistic rituals but which is not recognized as bona fide medicine in most of the world.  With ibogaine illegal in the U.S., a number of Americans with opioid addictions travel to other countries, often Canada or Mexico, where it is legal and unregulated, for ibogaine. Many who have received ibogaine treatment say they stopped feeling a desire for opioids and, in some cases, even drinking or smoking. Delegate Beitzel, who says his family has been personally impacted by the opioid crisis, has been pushing the Maryland General Assembly work toward legalizing ibogaine in the state…