UPDATE FEBRUARY 2021:  Nardil (Phenelzine) is now back on the Australia PBS.  Thank you to anyone and everyone who made this possible. We only hope that Nardil is now utilized more often in appropriate cases, as it is truly a life-saving medication for many.

UPDATE: Australian Nardil patients NOW HAVE TO PAY UP TO $310 for a bottle of 60 tablets. This is similar to asking a homeless starving person to pay $100 for a piece of bread!

In Australia, there is currently a critical shortage of the MAOI medication Phenelzine (NARDIL). Since this shortage many patients have had to either decrease their Nardil dose, or have had to switch medication. The majority have experienced a major recurrence of depression and anxiety symptoms, with some being rendered house-bound and non-functional. The vast majority of Nardil users have tried many medications (SSRIs /TCAs /NRIs) before commencing Nardil without having any success. Nardil, and Nardil alone, is the one medication that reduces their suffering and allows them to function.

In October 2020 the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) authorised two sponsors to supply an overseas-registered brand of phenelzine under Section 19A of the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989.

However this product is not currently subsidised through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme (PBS), and to this day no one, including the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Psychiatrists (RANZCP) have applied for PBS funding.

This means that Nardil patients HAVE TO NOW PAY UP TO $310 for a bottle of 60 tablets!!! Most Nardil users require a dose of between 60-90mg (4-6 tablets) daily, so this price is clearly not only inconvenient, but also prohibitive, for the majority.

So the Nardil patients, who already experience enough hardship with their depression and anxiety, are now experiencing additionally problems, since the very  very medication that allows them to function is either in shortage or extremely expensive to buy. 

MAOI medications like Nardil are woefully under prescribed without any justifiable reason: the MAOI myths have long been debunked by psychopharmacologists, see below. However, there is so little money to be made with MAOI's pharmacy data-bases/ drug-interaction software, official monographs, etc have not been updated to reflect the new knowledge about these extremely effective agents.

NARDIL must be available for all patients who truly require it:

https://www.reddit.com/r/MAOIs/comments/k0lgaj/why_are_ssris_used_over_maois_psychiatrist_mark/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/334260001_Revitalizing_monoamine_oxidase_inhibitors_a_call_for_action

https://pro.psychcentral.com/this-months-expert-jonathan-cole-m-d-reflections-on-the-use-of-maois/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22790112/

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/23423713_Monoamine_Oxidase_Inhibitors_A_Modern_Guide_to_an_Unrequited_Class_of_Antidepressants