Australia to Allow MDMA and Psilocybin for Some Mental Illnesses

MDMA and Psilocybin

Experts say the decision will make Australia the first country in the world to officially recognise MDMA and psilocybin as medicines. From July 2023, authorised psychiatrists will be able to prescribe the drugs for post-traumatic stress disorder and severe depression. The Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) made the surprise announcement on Friday afternoon, Feb. 3, 2023.

The drugs will only be allowed to be used in a very limited way, and remain otherwise prohibited, but the move was described as a “very welcome step away from what has been decades of demonisation” by Dr David Caldicott, a clinical senior lecturer in emergency medicine at Australian National University.

Mushrooms

Many species of magic mushrooms grow wild in Australia, but it is illegal to possess or supply psilocybin. Caldicott said it had become “abundantly clear” that a controlled supply of both MDMA and psilocybin “can have dramatic effects on conditions often considered refractory to contemporary treatment” and would particularly benefit returned service men and women from the Australian defence force.

MDMA & Psilocybin: Issues of Safety

Cognitive neuropsychologist Prof Susan Rossell said she still had “a significant degree of caution” about the decision, and that further research was needed. “We’ve got no data on long-term outcomes at all, so that worries me a lot,” she said. Dr Stephen Bright said the decision made Australia “the first country in the world to officially recognise MDMA and psilocybin as medicines” but added that extensive training was needed for the approved psychiatrists.

First Published in The Guardian, by Tory Shepherd, Feb 3, 2023.

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