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 Australia
set to legalize cultivation of medical cannabis
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[February 10, 2016]
By Colin Packham
SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia is expected to
legalize the cultivation of cannabis for medical or scientific purposes
with a bill introduced to parliament on Wednesday -- the first step
towards doctors eventually prescribing it to patients with chronic pain.
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 The bill will see Australia create a national licensing and permit
scheme to supply medical cannabis to patients with painful and
chronic conditions on clinical trials.
Several Australian states have committed to starting trials for the
cultivation of cannabis for medical and research purposes but
current laws forbid the growing of the plant.
As a result Australian manufacturers, researchers and patients on
clinical trials have been forced to access international supplies of
legal medicinal marijuana. But costs, limited supply and export
barriers make this challenging.
"Allowing controlled cultivation locally will provide the critical
missing piece for a sustainable legal supply of safe medicinal
cannabis products for Australian patients in the future," said
Australia's Health Minister Sussan Ley.
Although the legislation would aid supply to researchers and
patients on clinical trials, access to cannabis will not be allowed
for other patients and the general public.
Australia is set to decide by the end of March as to whether to
lower the criteria on how it allows the use of cannabis for medical
purposes.
Should Australia decide to treat cannabis similar to opium, patients
dealing with chronic pain could be prescribed the drug.
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MMJ PhytoTech Ltd became Australia's first listed medicinal
marijuana company following an initial public offering last year
that was three times oversubscribed.
"The market for medicinal cannabis in Australia is substantial. The
number of patients that could be targeted could be people with
epilepsy, Multiple sclerosis, while there is the other spectrum of
people with chronic pain," said Gaelan Bloomfield, manager at MMJ
PhytoTech Ltd.
(Reporting by Colin Packham; Editing by Michael Perry)
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