New Zealand Approves MDMA Therapy For Severe PTSD, Becomes Second Country After Australia To Allow Use

New Zealand's medicines regulator has approved two psychiatrists to prescribe pharmaceutical-grade MDMA to people with severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), making the country only the second in the world to allow the drug for treating the condition.

The approval by New Zealand's pharmaceutical regulatory body, Medsafe, follows Australia's decision in 2023 to permit the use of psychedelics for treating PTSD and treatment-resistant depression, The Guardian reports.

“PTSD ruins lives and is difficult to treat,” said Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour, who last year backed the approval of magic mushrooms to treat people with severe depression. “MDMA can be very effective at treating it through psychedelic-assisted therapy.”

Seymour said New Zealand was committed to expanding access to “innovative treatments”.

Treatment to combine MDMA with psychotherapy

PTSD is a mental health condition that can develop after a person experiences or is threatened by traumatic events, including death, combat or sexual assault.

New Zealand's Ministry of Health said MDMA-assisted treatment would be provided alongside psychotherapy. It stressed that patients would not be given the drug to take home.

“Treatment takes place in a controlled clinical setting under the care of an authorised psychiatrist and forms part of a comprehensive treatment plan,” the ministry said.

Patients receiving the treatment must be aged 18 or above.

US trials continue after FDA rejection

Clinical trials involving MDMA are continuing in the US after the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) rejected its medicinal use in 2024, citing insufficient evidence that the treatment was safe or effective.

Pharmaceutical options for treating PTSD in the US have so far been limited to two antidepressants, which require three months of dosing to take effect. Responses to the medications have varied.

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Israeli study examined MDMA and trauma

A study in Israel last year found that MDMA taken by partygoers at the Nova music festival had helped cushion the effects of the trauma they experienced during the Oct 7 attacks, in which hundreds were killed by Hamas.

New Zealand's decision follows Australia's 2023 approval and adds to growing international interest in the potential use of psychedelic-assisted therapies for serious mental health conditions.