What does New Zealand law say about medical marijuana?And more Overview of current NZ situation
The New Zealand Misuse of Drugs Act 1975 imposes a blanket ban on any use of cannabis, but the Minister of Health has the power under section 14 of the Misuse of Drugs Act and associated regulations to issue licences permitting medicinal cannabis use. The regulations state that a patient must have the written backing of their doctor (GP) and a relevant specialist, and must have tried all other available medicines and found that they don't work but that cannabis does.
Several people have made applications to various Ministers of Health, including Danuiel Clark and Greg Soar, but so far all have been rejected.
The excuse has
usually been that no clinical trials have
been conducted in New Zealand, even
though most registered medicines have
also not had local clinical trials. It seems
that for every other drug the government
accepts the results of overseas clinical
trials, but these trials must be repeated
in New Zealand for cannabis. More
recently, the latest Minister of Health,
Annette King, has rejected an application
by Greg Soar on the grounds that a
medicine that is smoked cannot be safe.
To that we argue that potential harms
from smoking cannabis are far from
proven, and even if that were true,
seriously ill patients and their doctors are
more concerned about current suffering
that potential future lung damage.
Concerns about cannabis smoke are
nothing but a diversion. Ministers have
also objected on the grounds of not
having a ready supply of cannabis to
make available. This is simply not true -
medical-grade cannabis is available from
GW Pharmaceuticals in the UK, the
Dutch Office of Medicinal Cannabis,
HortaPharm in Israel, Health Canada, or
NIDA in the USA, or it could come from
police seizures of cannabis, or more
simply, patients could be allowed to grow
their own supply. The continuing ban on
medicinal cannabis is based more on
political than scientific considerations.
Let's restore medical decision-making to
those who are trained to make medical
decisions - doctors and health
professionals - and get the politicians out
of the way.
Even though all applications for medical
marijuana permits have so far been
rejected, that is no reason for us to give
up now. If you use cannabis as a
medicine, you should first discuss your
use with your doctor, and seek their
written backing. You will also need
backing from a relevant specialist. Visit
your MP, and ask them to help you
obtain a permit from the Minister of
Health. Contact us, and we can help get
your formal application together. We
want to hear from all seriously ill people
who use cannabis as a medicine, as the
more people who demand it be made
available, the greater the likelihood this
will happen. Don't wait until you get
busted to say your use is medical -
make a stand now and you may never
get busted!
What about Marinol, or synthetic THC pills?
In 1986, a synthetic delta-9-THC capsule (Marinol) was marketed in the United States and labeled for use as an anti-emetic.
Despite some utility, this product has serious drawbacks including its cost.
For example, a patient taking three five-milligram capsules a day would spend over US$5,000 to use Marinol for one year. In
comparison to the natural, smokeable product Marinol also has some
pharmacological shortcomings. Because THC delivered in oral capsules enters the bloodstream slowly, it yields lower scrum
concentrations per dose. Oral THC circulates in the body longer at effective
concentrations, and more of it is metabolized to an active compound; thus, it more frequently yields unwanted psychoactive
effects. In patients suffering from nausea, the swallowing of capsules may
itself provoke vomiting. In short, the smoking of whole cannabis is more efficient in delivering THC and, in some cases, it may
be more effective.
For more information, see:
Unless stated otherwise, copyright © 1998-2005 by NORML New Zealand, working for marijuana law reform Published on: 2003-03-05 (4482 reads) [ Go Back ] |
