Journal of Medical Regulation Explores Implications Posed for Regulators by ‘Wild West’ of Ketamine Clinics
WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 18, 2025) – The latest issue of the Journal of Medical Regulation (JMR) explores the implications posed to regulators in recent years by the rapid emergence of ketamine clinics, which offer off-label treatment for a variety of conditions, including psychiatric disorders and pain.
In the article, “Ketamine and its Regulatory Implications: A Review,” Amol Soin, MD, and co-authors examine the pharmacology of ketamine and evidence supporting off-label use, along with suggestions for regulating the burgeoning ketamine clinic landscape.
“Over the past several years, rising public interest in ketamine has led to a “wild west” of socalled ketamine clinics, which offer off-label ketamine treatment, sometimes through compounding pharmacies, for a variety of conditions,” note the authors. “These clinics are largely unregulated, representing a possible ongoing threat to the safety of patients which may merit action among state medical regulators.”
In a commentary, “Dual-Loyalty: The Wicked Problem of Corporatization of Health Professions,” authors Zubin Austin, PhD, and Aly Háji, JD, explore the “dual loyalties” that may occur when licensed healthcare professionals must simultaneously reconcile a professional/ethical and fiduciary responsibility to act in the best interests of patients with a corporate responsibility to maximize shareholder value.
In other articles in the new issue:
The COVID-19 public health emergency demonstrated an increased need for healthcare services and resulted in emergency healthcare policies with expanded access to telehealth. In the original research article, “Telehealth Policy Determinants during the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency,” authors Antonios Koumpias, PhD, and Mouhamadou Ndiaye demonstrate that the adoption and maintenance of telehealth policy changes during the COVID-19 crisis was influenced primarily by public health shocks and health policy factors, as well as the political orientation of state governors, with socioeconomic conditions playing a less influential role.
In the article, “Trends in Case Complexity and Implications for Physician Health Programs: An Analysis of Referrals to the Colorado Physician Health Program,” Lori Crane, PhD, and coauthors note that PHPs need to prepare for an increase in the complexity of cases, higher levels of monitoring, and increasing skill to address healthcare provider mental health, cognitive problems, and substance abuse issues.
About the Journal of Medical Regulation
A quarterly, peer-reviewed publication, the Journal of Medical Regulation has been published continuously since 1913 by the Federation of State Medical Boards. The journal examines trends and topics of interest to the global community of medical regulators who protect the public’s health and safety through the licensing and disciplining of physicians and other healthcare professionals. Visit the JMR website at www.JMRonline.org. Archived issues of the journal can be accessed through the JSTOR digital library at https://www.jstor.org/journal/jmediregu.
About the Federation of State Medical Boards:
The Federation of State Medical Boards (FSMB) is a national non-profit organization representing the medical boards within the United States and its territories that license and discipline allopathic and osteopathic physicians and, in some jurisdictions, other healthcare professionals. FSMB serves as the voice for state medical boards, supporting them through education, assessment, research and advocacy while providing services and initiatives that promote patient safety, quality healthcare and regulatory best practices. FSMB serves the public through Docinfo.org, a free physician search tool which provides background information on the more than 1 million doctors in the United States. To learn more about FSMB, visit www.fsmb.org.