Preventing Suicide and Suffering Caused by Mental Illness
Please help people who are suffering with mental illness by supporting treatment innovation in Australia.
MMA is a charity registered with the Australian Charities and NFPs Commission to:
"Pursue the charitable purpose of advancing health and, principally, to promote the prevention and control of mental health diseases in humans by promoting the research, education and development of approved and evidence-based psychedelic medicines for therapeutic use" (1)
Mind Medicine Australia is not seeking in any way to encourage consumers to seek to obtain MDMA or psilocybin as a Schedule 8 medicine, seek a prescription for that medicine or seek to participate in MDMA or psilocybin assisted therapy. We are simply seeking to provide Australians with comprehensive educational content so that Australians can better understand developments in this area.
Why Psychedelic-assisted therapies are needed now
Current treatments for mental illness don't work for a large number of people and can cause nasty side effects. There is no clinical justification for the number of medications and treatments some patients receive. Please see Vanessa and Franco's Story on this short video and Vanessa's Letter to the PM:
Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies in Australia
Psilocybin and MDMA are now classified as controlled medicines in Australia when prescribed by authorised psychiatrists for treatment-resistant depression and PTSD.
In February 2023 the TGA approved Mind Medicine Australia's application to reschedule the substances psilocybin and MDMA from Schedule 9 (prohibited substances) to Schedule 8 (controlled medicines) of the Poisons Standard. With this rescheduling, psychiatrists who have the requisite approvals are now able to utilise psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression and MDMA for PTSD. These changes came into effect July 1st, 2023 and patients have been receiving treatment since January 2024.
Fundamentals of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies for Mental Health
Discover how psychedelic medicine is reshaping mental health treatment. Learn the science, clinical applications, and protocols to stay at the forefront of this emerging field. This is a 6-part online training program on the Fundamentals of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies.
The course is designed to educate a broad range of medical and mental health professionals, those with lived experience and consumers on the science and clinical use of psychedelics.
Join us from 6 October 2024
Everyone meeting the medical criteria should be able to access psychedelic-assisted therapies in medically controlled environments
Patient Support Fund
Our Patient Support Fund (PSF) has begun subsidising treatment costs for patients.
Please help us to make psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies accessible for al Australians who need them.
Our Achievements
Treatments are now taking place through Authorised Prescribers.
Fast Facts
- In February 2023 MDMA and psilocybin were rescheduled by the TGA on a restricted basis to become Schedule 8 medicines in response to applications from Mind Medicine Australia. This made Australia the first country in the world to accord them this status.1
- In January 2024, the first patients in Australia received treatment with psychedelic-assisted therapy as part of the Therapeutic Goods Administration's (TGA) Authorised Prescriber (AP) program with medicines and training supplied through Mind Medicine Australia.1
- Interest in psychedelic-assisted therapies has been growing steadily around the world in recent years.
- We expect that over 500 clinicians and therapists will be trained in Australia by December 2024 through Mind Medicine Australia's world-leading Certificate in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies™ training program.
- The medicines used in these therapies have shown positive results for both safety and efficacy in clinical trials with no evidence of addiction.2 3 4
- A variety of psychedelic therapies are being trialled as treatments for depression, PTSD, anxiety, end-of-life distress, dementia, anorexia and eating disorders, OCD, and opioid, alcohol and smoking addictions and a number of other illnesses.5
- The WHO estimates that 3 out of 4 people suffering from major depression do not receive adequate treatment.6
- These therapies are showing remission rates of up to 60-80% after just 2-3 treatments when used in combination with psychotherapy and with minimal adverse side-effects.7 8 9
- There have been over 300+ trials in the past decade.10
- Both psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy11 for major and treatment-resistant depression as well as MDMA-assisted psychotherapy12 for PTSD have been granted “Breakthrough Therapy Designation” by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the USA to fast-track the FDA's process for registration because clinical evidence to date indicates that they may demonstrate substantial improvement over currently available therapies. The technical meaning of Breakthrough Therapy Designation can be found here
1 TGA. (2022). Notice of final decision to amend or not amend the current poisons standard: June 2022 (ACMS-38). Retrieved from https://
2 Mitchell, J.M., Ot'alora G., M., van der Kolk, B. et al. MDMA-assisted therapy for moderate to severe PTSD: a randomized, placebo-controlled phase 3 trial. Nat Med 29, 2473-2480 (2023).
3 Raison CL, Sanacora G, Woolley J, et al. Single-Dose Psilocybin Treatment for Major Depressive Disorder: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA. 2023;330(9):843-853. doi:10.1001/jama.2023.14530
4 Nicholas, C. R., Wang, J. B., Coker, A., Mitchell, J. M., Klaire, S. S., Yazar-Klosinski, B., ... & Doblin, R. (2022). The effects of MDMA-assisted therapy on alcohol and substance use in a phase 3 trial for treatment of severe PTSD. Drug and alcohol dependence, 233, 109356.
5 Mind Medicine Australia. (n.d.). Clinical trials. Mind Medicine Australia. https://
6 3 out of 4 people suffering from major depression do not receive adequate treatment. https://
7 Ross S, Bossis A, Guss J, Agin-Liebes G, Malone T, Cohen B, Mennenga SE, Belser A, Kalliontzi K, Babb J, Su Z, Corby P, Schmidt BL. Rapid and sustained symptom reduction following psilocybin treatment for anxiety and depression in patients with life-threatening cancer: a randomized controlled trial. J Psychopharmacol. 2016 Dec;30(12):1165-1180. doi: 10.1177/0269881116675512. PMID: 27909164; PMCID: PMC5367551.
8 Jerome, L., Feduccia, A. A., Wang, J. B., Hamilton, S., Yazar-Klosinski, B., Emerson, A., ... & Doblin, R. (2020). Long-term follow-up outcomes of MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for treatment of PTSD: a longitudinal pooled analysis of six phase 2 trials. Psychopharmacology, 237, 2485-2497.
9 Griffiths RR, Johnson MW, Carducci MA, Umbricht A, Richards WA, Richards BD, Cosimano MP, Klinedinst MA. Psilocybin produces substantial and sustained decreases in depression and anxiety in patients with life-threatening cancer: A randomized double-blind trial. J Psychopharmacol. 2016 Dec;30(12):1181-1197. doi: 10.1177/0269881116675513. PMID: 27909165; PMCID: PMC5367557.
10 ClinicalTrials.gov. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://clinicaltrials.gov
11 Business Wire. (2019, November 22). FDA grants Breakthrough Therapy Designation to Usona Institute's psilocybin program for major depressive disorder. Business Wire. https://
12 Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS). (n.d.). Press release: FDA grants Breakthrough Therapy Designation for MDMA-assisted psychotherapy for PTSD, agrees on Special Protocol Assessment for Phase 3 trials. MAPS. https://maps.org/news/media/press-release-fda-grants-breakthrough-therapy-designation-for-mdma-assisted-psychotherapy-for-ptsd-agrees-on-special-protocol-assessment-for-phase-3-trials
Your donation supports:
Financial Assistance Toward Practitioner Professional Development
Supporting access for practitioners to build upon their skills. This includes our Certificate in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies program, as well as shorter workshops to prepare mental health professionals for the future.
Awareness and Knowledge Building
We organise educational events, film screenings, conferences and also have local chapters open to the public.
Access to Medically Approved Therapy
We promote changes in legislation, promote legal and ethical frameworks, provide psychological support services, develop clinical rollouts and medicine manufacturing capabilities.
Engagement with University sector and novel research
Engagement with universities to promote research, education, development and economic analysis and rollout plans.
Supporting those who cannot afford treatments
Mind Medicine Australia has set up a Patient Support Fund (PSF) to receive donations from large to small philanthropists, and hopefully governments around Australia, to support those who cannot afford the full costs of treatments.
Heartfelt thanks to our partners & major donors
