THE medicinal cannabis pantry may soon be fully-stocked for patients, but easy access is still the big question for campaigners.
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Federal Health Minister Greg Hunt announced a slew of changes to improve the availability of medicinal cannabis, with patients still experiencing difficulty accessing products, nearly one year since legislation was passed.
With no Australian suppliers, patients have been forced to navigate a tricky importation process, with only a small number of doctors authorised to prescribe across the nation.
In a statement, the minister said the government had authorised the “controlled importation” of approved medicinal cannabis products to build an interim supply in the country, “until domestic production meets local needs”.
“At present, doctors approved to supply medicinal cannabis products must import the product as local production is only starting to be developed following the passage of legislation to allow domestic production late last year,” the statement said.
“It is expected that within eight weeks, possibly sooner, Australia will have a store of imported medicinal cannabis products so that approved patients can have greater confidence in the supply arrangements for their doctors.”
The news means good news for locals who have been campaigning for this outcome as although the use of medical cannabis for those with illnesses such as cancer and motor neurone disease was legalised last year, without a legal local market, those with prescriptions to access the drug had to import the products or use the black market.
Mr Hunt said: “We have listened to the concerns of patients and their families that are having difficulty accessing the product while domestic production becomes available.”
The rescheduling of cannabis to a category 8 drug meant patients were faced with a number of barriers trying to find products that could be legally imported, which she said left people stuck with the black market.