Medical marijuana on prescription

Written By: - Date published: 11:41 am, June 2nd, 2017 - 11 comments
Categories: capitalism, drugs, health - Tags: ,

Doctors now able to prescribe cannabidiol (RNZ)

The government is lifting restrictions on cannabidiol, or CBD, a substance found in cannabis with potential therapeutic value and little or no psychoactive properties.

It means doctors will be able to prescribe products containing CBD without Ministry of Health approval.

Cannabidiol is currently a controlled drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act.

Strict import and export restrictions on products sourced from other countries would hold back their supply to New Zealand, Mr Dunne said.

And he said there were currently very few products which meet the quality standards necessary to be prescribed.

“However, we do know of at least one CBD product in development made to high manufacturing standards that will contain two percent or less of the other cannabinoids found in cannabis,” said Mr Dunne.

“Really what today’s announcement is about is future-proofing the system … Once the quality products become available, it means they will be able to be prescribed without any form of ministerial or other interventions.”

About time, and it’s a significant improvement on the stressful, lengthy and often unreliable process people have had to go through up until now to access this medicine.

But let’s also note that Dunne is setting up things to prevent people from growing their own cannabis, or processing their own medicine, and instead wants the control put firmly with the pharmaceutical industry and the state. Which means that people in need without funds or good access to the System will suffer. Better would be to decriminalise in ways that empower people and their communities. We need good quality, commercial CBD available for sale, but we also need to let the people already making their now continue to develop that source.

Update, The Green Party press release, which addresses some of the class/access issues,

The Green Party welcomes the move by Associate Health Minister Peter Dunne to declassify a non-psychoactive substance in cannabis, cannabidiol (CBD), for therapeutic purposes today.

“It’s fantastic to see the Government finally accepting expert advice that CBD should be exempted from the Misuse of Drugs Act. This is one component of the Member’s Bill I put forward last month,” said Green Party health spokesperson Julie Anne Genter.

“The Greens are committed to comprehensive drug law reform, including medicinal cannabis being legal, affordable, and accessible.

“It’s good seeing policy change that will help some of the people who are currently suffering, but the high cost of importing these medicinal products continues to be a barrier.

“My Bill would ensure that sick people have affordable access. Why should people have to pay thousands of dollars a month for imported medicinal cannabis products, when the plant is very cheap to grow here?

“We are decades behind other countries on this. It’s time to ensure we can produce our own cannabis-based medicines here in Aotearoa.

“Evidence and experience overseas shows cannabis has very few side effects compared to other pharmaceutical pain relief and sleep aids, including lower risk of dependency and absolutely no risk of death from overdose.

“The best way to minimise the harms associated with drug use is to build a culture that treats drug abuse as a health issue, not a criminal one,” said Ms Genter.

11 comments on “Medical marijuana on prescription ”

  1. Draco T Bastard 1

    Better would be to decriminalise in ways that empower people and their communities. We need good quality, commercial CBD available for sale, but we also need to let the people already making their now continue to develop that source.

    That’s not decriminalisation but legalisation. Decriminalisation just means that people caught with a small amount on them won’t be prosecuted while legalisation allows people to do stuff such as grow it and process it.

  2. Draco T Bastard 2

    “We are decades behind other countries on this. It’s time to ensure we can produce our own cannabis-based medicines here in Aotearoa.

    We should have been doing that for decades. The reality is that we shouldn’t have followed the US in making marijuana illegal.

  3. adam 3

    At anywhere from $150 to $1200 for a prescription, this is more Tory smoke screens and BS.

    The majority of people who need this are disabled and poor. So once again corporations before people.

    Dunne is such toady for the corporate crowed, just another Mr Quaggy.

  4. AsleepWhileWalking 4

    For goodness sake just decriminalise/or legalise it and be done with it.

    As OP says only reason for the suggested changes is for drug companies to collect revenue through a government middleman.

  5. Donna Tyler 5

    Its great for some diseases but not others. Its THC that kills cancer, they know that but it seems its ‘Better that they die than let them get high”.

    • Both CBD and THC have cancer killing methods… some cancers respond better to THC whilst others to CBD… others need a ratio of both… youtube some videos and you will find one video of an infant’s brain cancer being healed with CBD alone… either way this plant medicine is amazing 🙂

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