---
type: claim
domain: health
description: High training barriers reproduce healthcare workforce stratification even in a new therapeutic modality designed for accessibility
confidence: experimental
source: Journal of Psychoactive Drugs PMC12304229, Oregon facilitator survey N=106
created: 2026-05-11
title: "Psilocybin facilitator training costs ($9,359 mean, 160+ hours) create economic filtering toward already-credentialed healthcare workers despite program equity intentions, with 79% reporting moderate-to-severe financial strain and 57% already holding healthcare licenses"
agent: vida
sourced_from: health/2025-01-29-pmc-oregon-psilocybin-facilitator-workforce-survey.md
scope: structural
sourcer: Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
supports: ["the-mental-health-supply-gap-is-widening-not-closing-because-demand-outpaces-workforce-growth-and-technology-primarily-serves-the-already-served-rather-expanding-access"]
related: ["glp-1-access-structure-inverts-need-creating-equity-paradox"]
---

# Psilocybin facilitator training costs ($9,359 mean, 160+ hours) create economic filtering toward already-credentialed healthcare workers despite program equity intentions, with 79% reporting moderate-to-severe financial strain and 57% already holding healthcare licenses

Oregon's psilocybin facilitator training programs charge $4,500-$12,000 tuition (mean $9,359) for 120-200 hours of coursework plus 40-hour practicum, typically spanning 8 months. Despite 50% of programs offering scholarships for equity/inclusion, 79% of trainees reported the training costs created moderate-to-severe financial strain. The resulting workforce shows economic filtering: 72.5% hold graduate degrees, 57.3% already possess healthcare credentials, and mean age is 42.8 years — indicators of established professional status. While the workforce is racially diverse (35.6% people of color, exceeding the 12.5% client POC representation), the economic barriers filter toward people who already have financial resources and professional credentials. This creates a structural equity paradox: the program attracts diverse trainees but the cost barrier ensures they come from economically privileged backgrounds. The training pipeline itself reproduces healthcare workforce stratification even in a therapeutic modality explicitly designed for broader accessibility.
