Australia approves therapeutic use of psychoactive substances for two conditions

Australia became the first country to allow the use of drugs containing the substances psilocybin (found in so-called hallucinogenic mushrooms) and MDMA (known as ecstasy) following the approval of the country’s Medicines Regulatory Authority (TSA).

The measure comes into effect on July 1, according to a Therapeutic Assets Administration (TGA) statement released on Friday and published this Saturday by Australian media, saying both substances are prescribed by “specially authorized psychiatrists for the treatment of certain mental illnesses.”

Thus, the drug regulatory authority in Australia allows the prescription of the synthetic drug MDMA (3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine) for the treatment of post-traumatic stress disorder and psilocybin for the treatment of depression when the patient’s condition does not improve with other drugs.

“These are the only two conditions for which there is sufficient evidence of potential benefit in some patients,” the statement said.

In order to prescribe drugs with these substances, psychiatrists will need to obtain approval from the TCA, which will send the request to an ethics investigation committee.

The TGA acknowledged a “no option” for patients with mental illness who are resistant to treatment, but indicates that potential side effects of these treatments will need to be monitored.

It also emphasizes that the use of these substances in addition to these two diseases remains prohibited.

While there are no licensed products containing any of these substances on the Australian market, the TGA will allow psychiatrists authorized to prescribe them to legally purchase “unapproved drugs” that contain them.