Since the beginning of the pandemic in 2020, there has been a big uptick in the use of the powerful anesthetic ketamine to treat anxiety and depression. But after the death last year of actor Matthew Perry, star of the hit sitcom “Friends,” due in part to the effects of ketamine, doctors and government officials are reconsidering the drug’s widespread availability.

On today’s “Post Reports,” Elahe Izadi speaks with reporter Daniel Gilbert, who has been following the ketamine boom for years. They talk about how ketamine became so widely accessible and about the uncertain future of the drug. 

Today’s show was produced by Peter Bresnan, with help from Emma Talkoff and Ali Bianco. It was edited by Monica Campbell and mixed by Rennie Svirnovskiy. 

Subscribe to The Washington Post here.