The Australian drug watchdog announced on Friday that the government will soon legalise the psychedelic drugs MDMA and psilocybin, sometimes known as ecstasy and magic mushrooms, for the treatment of patients with depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.
The Therapeutic Goods Administration announced that psychiatrists will be able to administer both drugs starting in July after determining that there is ‘adequate evidence for possible benefits in select patients.’
Both medications are currently ‘prohibited substances,’ which means that only carefully monitored clinical trials are permitted to use them.
According to the administration, the medications produced a ‘altered state of consciousness’ that appeared to benefit the patients and were ‘pretty safe’ when given in a medical environment.
University of South Australia’s mental health and suicide prevention researcher Mike Musker welcomed the move as ‘much awaited’.
‘There are many people in the community experiencing PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) and depression, particularly army veterans and people who have worked in emergency services, where standard psychiatric drugs have not worked and offer no relief,’ he stated.
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