With the arrival of the concept of medical cannabis, there is a new class of patients called the medical cannabis patients. In different US states and countries in Europe, Asia and Oceania like Germany, Israel, Netherlands, Australia, Thailand, etc where cannabis has been legalized for medical use, medical committees comprising of experts and experienced physicians, get together to decide the medical conditions that are eligible for the use of medical cannabis as treatment. So far the lists include dozens of illnesses including cancer, chronic pain, terminal illnesses, palliative treatment, autism, epilepsy, PTSD, insomnia, opioid addiction, alcohol addiction, Parkinson's, anxiety, multiple sclerosis, diabetes, obesity, depression, glaucoma, arthritis, age related illnesses, etc. The inclusion of such a vast and diverse set of health conditions has meant that the number of registered medical cannabis patients is already in the millions even though only a small number of places have made it legal.
The process with regard to legalized medical cannabis is generally as follows. Committees of medical experts are formed at state levels in the US and national levels in some countries. These committees go through available material, listen to anecdotal evidence from people, discuss and consider various medical conditions that can be treated with cannabis. Once these committees of medical experts finalize the medical conditions eligible for the use of cannabis as medicine, this is made known to physicians who practice in that particular region.When a patient suffering from one of the approved conditions meets a physician, the physician may recommend medical cannabis as an option. An increasing number of physicians these days are going ahead and suggesting cannabis. Many surveys have shown that the number of physicians who believe in the effectiveness of cannabis is increasing as more and more studies come out in its favor. In quite a few cases however, it is the patient who has heard about medical cannabis from other sources and speaks to the physician regarding the option. In either case, after considering the situation, the physician prescribes medical cannabis for the patient.
The process with regard to legalized medical cannabis is generally as follows. Committees of medical experts are formed at state levels in the US and national levels in some countries. These committees go through available material, listen to anecdotal evidence from people, discuss and consider various medical conditions that can be treated with cannabis. Once these committees of medical experts finalize the medical conditions eligible for the use of cannabis as medicine, this is made known to physicians who practice in that particular region.When a patient suffering from one of the approved conditions meets a physician, the physician may recommend medical cannabis as an option. An increasing number of physicians these days are going ahead and suggesting cannabis. Many surveys have shown that the number of physicians who believe in the effectiveness of cannabis is increasing as more and more studies come out in its favor. In quite a few cases however, it is the patient who has heard about medical cannabis from other sources and speaks to the physician regarding the option. In either case, after considering the situation, the physician prescribes medical cannabis for the patient.
Based on the prescription, the patient registers in a state registry that maintains records of cannabis patients. Based on the prescription and registration the patient is issued an identity card. The patient is now free to go to one of the medical cannabis dispensaries that have been established where medical cannabis is legal. At the dispensary, the patient is allowed to buy a certain quantity of cannabis based on the medical condition and the local regulations regarding the amount of cannabis that an individual can procure at a given time. In most places there are systems and checks in place to ensure that patients do not exceed their daily, weekly or monthly quotas of cannabis purchases. As of now most patients pay for their cannabis out of their pockets though there are moves to ensure that the costs are covered through medical insurance at the state level. Some states in the US have also started the practice where it is left entirely to the physician's judgement as to what medical conditions to prescribe cannabis for.
There are issues in the current medical cannabis industry in terms of patients sometimes having to travel long distances to reach a dispensary though the number of dispensaries are growing all the time. The concept of home delivery is gaining in popularity especially among the elderly or patients who are not able to move about. In most places where medical cannabis is legal, the concept of a caregiver exists, where a particular person plays the role of caregiver and receives permission to grow a fixed number of cannabis plants based on a number of patients that need to be provided for. Usually these patients are severely ill and unable to purchase their own cannabis.The caregiver also has an identity card through being registered in the state registry along with the patient, thus enabling the caregiver to also procure cannabis for the patient if required.
Medical cannabis is seen as the first step towards full recreational use legalization since people get familiar with the plant and lose the stigma of using it. As the number of people using cannabis for medical purposes increases, the wider society sees the evidence of the benefits of cannabis and becomes more receptive to full legalization. This is the model that has been followed in Canada, Colorado, California, etc and in most other places that have reached full adult recreational use legalization now. It has been seen as well that when cannabis for recreational use is legalized, the medical use system shrinks. This is because with recreational use legalization for adults, many more outlets in the form of retail outlets, besides dispensaries are opened. These require that a person purchasing cannabis only meet the criteria of being an adult and so many of the restrictions surrounding the medical use industry such as registrations, prescriptions and medical identity cards are not required. This makes cannabis much more accessible to patients who need it especially the poorest, minorities, indigenous communities, the elderly, the very ill and women who may find it difficult to go through the entire medical cannabis use system.
Worldwide there is a clear need to go for full adult recreational use legalization so that the maximum number of people who need the plant get access to it at the earliest. The number of people world wide suffering from the same medical conditions as that listed in the 33+ US states that have legalized medical cannabis shouldn't have to wait to go through the entire cycle of validations and scrutiny that involves first legalizing for medical use, condition by condition, and then finally legalizing for recreational use. The practice of states to first go for legalizing medical cannabis must stop and recreational cannabis legalization must be addressed first. Otherwise what we are seeing is that the same elite classes and nations that can afford and thrive on synthetic pharma drugs, who strive to keep cannabis illegal, are the ones who are getting access through the medical cannabis route with their physicians and money to afford the cannabis supplied, quite often, by multinational pharma companies. The persons who have suffered due to lack of access to synthetic pharma drugs continue to suffer the same problems in the medical cannabis legalization scenario for want of documentation, lack of access to physicians and lack of money to purchase the drugs. They are the poorest persons, the homeless, the laboring and working classes, the religious mendicants, the very old and sick, in fact the very demographics that were ultimately denied their cannabis due to the prohibition imposed by the elite classes who ironically now enjoy the very same cannabis as medical cannabis.
There are issues in the current medical cannabis industry in terms of patients sometimes having to travel long distances to reach a dispensary though the number of dispensaries are growing all the time. The concept of home delivery is gaining in popularity especially among the elderly or patients who are not able to move about. In most places where medical cannabis is legal, the concept of a caregiver exists, where a particular person plays the role of caregiver and receives permission to grow a fixed number of cannabis plants based on a number of patients that need to be provided for. Usually these patients are severely ill and unable to purchase their own cannabis.The caregiver also has an identity card through being registered in the state registry along with the patient, thus enabling the caregiver to also procure cannabis for the patient if required.
Medical cannabis is seen as the first step towards full recreational use legalization since people get familiar with the plant and lose the stigma of using it. As the number of people using cannabis for medical purposes increases, the wider society sees the evidence of the benefits of cannabis and becomes more receptive to full legalization. This is the model that has been followed in Canada, Colorado, California, etc and in most other places that have reached full adult recreational use legalization now. It has been seen as well that when cannabis for recreational use is legalized, the medical use system shrinks. This is because with recreational use legalization for adults, many more outlets in the form of retail outlets, besides dispensaries are opened. These require that a person purchasing cannabis only meet the criteria of being an adult and so many of the restrictions surrounding the medical use industry such as registrations, prescriptions and medical identity cards are not required. This makes cannabis much more accessible to patients who need it especially the poorest, minorities, indigenous communities, the elderly, the very ill and women who may find it difficult to go through the entire medical cannabis use system.
Worldwide there is a clear need to go for full adult recreational use legalization so that the maximum number of people who need the plant get access to it at the earliest. The number of people world wide suffering from the same medical conditions as that listed in the 33+ US states that have legalized medical cannabis shouldn't have to wait to go through the entire cycle of validations and scrutiny that involves first legalizing for medical use, condition by condition, and then finally legalizing for recreational use. The practice of states to first go for legalizing medical cannabis must stop and recreational cannabis legalization must be addressed first. Otherwise what we are seeing is that the same elite classes and nations that can afford and thrive on synthetic pharma drugs, who strive to keep cannabis illegal, are the ones who are getting access through the medical cannabis route with their physicians and money to afford the cannabis supplied, quite often, by multinational pharma companies. The persons who have suffered due to lack of access to synthetic pharma drugs continue to suffer the same problems in the medical cannabis legalization scenario for want of documentation, lack of access to physicians and lack of money to purchase the drugs. They are the poorest persons, the homeless, the laboring and working classes, the religious mendicants, the very old and sick, in fact the very demographics that were ultimately denied their cannabis due to the prohibition imposed by the elite classes who ironically now enjoy the very same cannabis as medical cannabis.
The vast majority that would truly benefit from cannabis continue to go the black market route and often end up addicted to much more harmful synthetic drugs such as methamphetamine, opioids, synthetic cannabinoids, novel psychotropic substances and abuse of prescription medicine, besides alcohol and the inhuman action of law and drug enforcement. Cannabis is not a pharmaceutical invention by a pharma company that requires trials and pilot studies before being made accessible to the public. It is a natural plant, a widely recognized universal medicine, that has been around for thousands of years and has been used by nearly all cultures for medicinal, social and recreational purposes. The legalization of cannabis for recreational use should be seen as a preventive mechanism that stops many life threatening conditions, such as cancer and HIV, from developing in individuals who are susceptible. Surely the number of conditions already approved in places where medical cannabis has been legalized, the number of people suffering from them worldwide as well as those vulnerable to it constitutes a significant part of the world's population, significant enough for the UN, WHO and heads of each and every country to legalize recreational use. This is an urgent action for public health that needs to be carried out at the highest priority as the people suffering, especially serious conditions, cannot afford to wait any longer while administrators are focused on the business of the medical industry and synthetic pharmaceutical drugs industry.
The recent so-called coronavirus pandemic has in fact pushed the treatments of all medical conditions that are not Covid related to the background. As the medical and pharma industry amass vast wealth through their sale of Covid related medicine and services, the vast majority of persons, who suffer from numerous other more life threatening conditions, have been completely ignored. They would all benefit nearly instantaneously with the legalization of cannabis for recreational use and home growing. Even many of the symptoms associated with Covid such as pain, inflammation, etc could be treated with cannabis instead of the vast array of synthetic pharma drugs and the very dangerous vaccines that are killing these people. The world's governments and the UN continue to however completely ignore this urgent reality and proceed in the direction that increases the harms to global public health rather than reduces them. The only compelling reason that justifies this incredibly apathetic attitude of governments and global health bodies towards global cannabis legalization for recreational use appears to be the protection of the existing medical industry and synthetic pharma drug industry who both stand to lose considerably financially with the legalization including home growing of cannabis for recreational use.
Related articles
The following list of articles taken from various media speak about the above subject. Words in italics are the thoughts of yours truly at the time of reading the article.'As availability of cannabis products increases, and consumers settle into consistent modes of use, there is an increasing divergence between patterns seen among medical consumers and adult-use consumers. Medical consumers report using cannabis at higher rates than do adult consumers:
Two-fifths (41%) of medical consumers are daily consumers (a rate 11% higher than for adult-use consumers), while another 26% are weekly consumers. Given those higher use rates, medical consumers also tend to spend at higher rates than do adult-use consumers, with 30% of the former (vs. 22% of the latter) spending an average above $100+ per purchase.'
https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/the-medical-cannabis-consumer-in-2021/
Patients enrolled in the registry suffered from a variety of disorders, including chronic pain, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, depression, migraine, inflammatory bowel disease, and other afflictions. Study participants consumed cannabis by either vaporizing marijuana flowers or by ingesting plant-derived extracts containing both THC and CBD. Researchers assessed subjects’ symptoms compared to baseline at one, three, six, and twelve months.
Authors reported that the majority of patients experienced sustained improvements following cannabis therapy. Adverse events associated with cannabis were typically mild, with the most frequently reported side-effects being dry mouth and fatigue.
They concluded: “This observational study suggests that initiating treatment with CBMPs [cannabis-based medicinal products] is associated with an improvement in general HRQoL [health-related quality of life], as well as sleep- and anxiety-specific symptoms up to 12 months in patients with chronic illness. … Most patients tolerated the treatment well, however, the risk of AEs [adverse events] should be considered before initiating CBMPs. In particular, female and cannabis-naïve patients are at increased likelihood of experiencing adverse events. These findings may help to inform current clinical practice, but most importantly, highlights the need for further clinical trials to determine causality and generate guidelines to optimize therapy with CBMPs.”
https://norml.org/news/2023/03/09/study-cannabis-products-improve-health-related-quality-of-life-in-patients-with-chronic-illnesses/
Two-fifths (41%) of medical consumers are daily consumers (a rate 11% higher than for adult-use consumers), while another 26% are weekly consumers. Given those higher use rates, medical consumers also tend to spend at higher rates than do adult-use consumers, with 30% of the former (vs. 22% of the latter) spending an average above $100+ per purchase.'
https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/the-medical-cannabis-consumer-in-2021/
Patients enrolled in the registry suffered from a variety of disorders, including chronic pain, anxiety, post-traumatic stress, depression, migraine, inflammatory bowel disease, and other afflictions. Study participants consumed cannabis by either vaporizing marijuana flowers or by ingesting plant-derived extracts containing both THC and CBD. Researchers assessed subjects’ symptoms compared to baseline at one, three, six, and twelve months.
Authors reported that the majority of patients experienced sustained improvements following cannabis therapy. Adverse events associated with cannabis were typically mild, with the most frequently reported side-effects being dry mouth and fatigue.
They concluded: “This observational study suggests that initiating treatment with CBMPs [cannabis-based medicinal products] is associated with an improvement in general HRQoL [health-related quality of life], as well as sleep- and anxiety-specific symptoms up to 12 months in patients with chronic illness. … Most patients tolerated the treatment well, however, the risk of AEs [adverse events] should be considered before initiating CBMPs. In particular, female and cannabis-naïve patients are at increased likelihood of experiencing adverse events. These findings may help to inform current clinical practice, but most importantly, highlights the need for further clinical trials to determine causality and generate guidelines to optimize therapy with CBMPs.”
https://norml.org/news/2023/03/09/study-cannabis-products-improve-health-related-quality-of-life-in-patients-with-chronic-illnesses/
'Given the importance of patients knowing the laws regarding medical cannabis in the jurisdictions they visit, Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the largest national member-based organization promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research, has created The Medical Cannabis Patient’s Guide for U.S. Travel. This guide will help patients understand the laws in the states and territories in which they are eligible to obtain medical cannabis so that they may do so safely and legally'
https://www.safeaccessnow.org/travel
'A district judge in New Mexico made a final ruling ordering regulators to issue medical cannabis patient cards to qualifying out-of-state residents, but the governor’s office said it will appeal.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/judge-new-mexico-must-issue-medical-marijuana-cards-to-non-residents/
'It states, "No employer may refuse to hire, discipline, discharge or otherwise penalize an applicant or employee solely on the basis of a positive test for marijuana components or metabolites."
Oklahoma is the fifteenth state to explicitly protect medical cannabis patients from workplace discrimination, according to California NORML.'
https://norml.org/news/2019/08/29/oklahoma-expanded-protections-for-cannabis-patients-take-effect
'Given the importance of patients knowing the laws regarding medical cannabis in the jurisdictions they visit, Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the largest national member-based organization promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research, has created The Medical Cannabis Patient’s Guide for U.S. Travel. This guide will help patients understand the laws in the states and territories in which they are eligible to obtain medical cannabis so that they may do so safely and legally'
https://www.safeaccessnow.org/travel
'Conclusions
Among nurses and physicians, stigma towards medicinal cannabis users mediated the relationship between attitudes towards the medical use of cannabis and the intention to recommend medicinal cannabis for patients with qualifying conditions, whereas subjective norms moderated this relationship. Effective treatment with medicinal cannabis might be compromised by health-care providers' negative attitudes, stigma and subjective norms'
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ijn.12836
'CBD consumers partake for a variety of reasons. Older consumers reported being more likely to seek pain management. Similarly, medical consumers were the most likely group to consume CBD on a daily basis, while those looking to unwind or use CBD for general wellness were less consistent in their use'
https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/appealing-to-cbd-consumers-interests-in-the-cannabinoid/
'Conclusions: Latest available prevalence estimates indicate that a significant proportion of patients in the United States with cancer use cannabis and/or cannabinoids (18.3-40.0%). There is substantial evidence for the effectiveness of cannabis and cannabinoids in treating cancer-related pain; specifically, oromucosal THC/CBD spray. There is conclusive evidence for the effectiveness of cannabis and cannabinoids in relieving chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting; specifically, oral THC.'
https://ascopubs.org/doi/abs/10.1200/JCO.2020.38.15_suppl.12091
'Results: Ninety-six cancer patients (mean age 60.0y (±13.9); 41 (42.7%) males) had at least one follow-up (FUP) and were included in the study. The main cancer types were breast (19.8%), lung (9.4%) and colorectal (9.4%). Adverse events (top three: drowsiness, low energy and nausea) were reported in 28% of patients, with 9% having to stop MC [medical cannabis]. Mean Brief Pain Inventory scores significantly improved between baseline, FUP-2 and FUP-3 for worst pain (5.4± SEM 0.3 vs 4.3±0.3 and 3.7±0.4) and average pain severity (4.2±0.2 vs 3.2±0.3 and 3.2±0.4). Anorexia improved (3.4±0.3 vs 2.2±0.4 and 1.7±0.4), as measured via the revised Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS-r). ESAS-r wellbeing improved significantly between baseline and FUP-1 (4.4±0.2 vs 3.7±0.2). Between baseline and each FUP, approximately a third of patients dropped their use of concurrent medications (including analgesics, antidepressants and anxiolytics), as measured by the Medication Quantification Scale. Conclusions: The CPP data support the safety and effectiveness of MC as a complementary option for improving pain control, appetite and quality of life in SCC.'
https://ascopubs.org/doi/abs/10.1200/JCO.2020.38.15_suppl.12106
'Ninety percent of those currently using cannabis for pain management said that it provided either moderate or significant relief and 40 percent of subjects reported having decreased their consumption of other analgesic medications following their initiation of cannabis therapy. Pain patients most frequently reported consuming products high in CBD rather than THC.'
https://norml.org/news/2020/07/09/survey-one-in-five-patients-report-using-cannabis-products-for-musculoskeletal-pain
https://www.safeaccessnow.org/travel
'A district judge in New Mexico made a final ruling ordering regulators to issue medical cannabis patient cards to qualifying out-of-state residents, but the governor’s office said it will appeal.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/judge-new-mexico-must-issue-medical-marijuana-cards-to-non-residents/
'It states, "No employer may refuse to hire, discipline, discharge or otherwise penalize an applicant or employee solely on the basis of a positive test for marijuana components or metabolites."
Oklahoma is the fifteenth state to explicitly protect medical cannabis patients from workplace discrimination, according to California NORML.'
https://norml.org/news/2019/08/29/oklahoma-expanded-protections-for-cannabis-patients-take-effect
'Given the importance of patients knowing the laws regarding medical cannabis in the jurisdictions they visit, Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the largest national member-based organization promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research, has created The Medical Cannabis Patient’s Guide for U.S. Travel. This guide will help patients understand the laws in the states and territories in which they are eligible to obtain medical cannabis so that they may do so safely and legally'
https://www.safeaccessnow.org/travel
'Conclusions
Among nurses and physicians, stigma towards medicinal cannabis users mediated the relationship between attitudes towards the medical use of cannabis and the intention to recommend medicinal cannabis for patients with qualifying conditions, whereas subjective norms moderated this relationship. Effective treatment with medicinal cannabis might be compromised by health-care providers' negative attitudes, stigma and subjective norms'
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ijn.12836
- 'Among CBD consumers, about 1 in 5 (21%) use it daily, while 40% do so weekly.
- One quarter (25%) of CBD consumers reported having tried it only once or twice.
- Men reported being likelier than women to consume CBD on a daily and weekly basis, as did older consumers (i.e., ages 55+) rather than younger consumers (i.e., ages 18-34).
- More recent adoption of CBD correlates with more habitual consumption of it'
'CBD consumers partake for a variety of reasons. Older consumers reported being more likely to seek pain management. Similarly, medical consumers were the most likely group to consume CBD on a daily basis, while those looking to unwind or use CBD for general wellness were less consistent in their use'
https://newfrontierdata.com/cannabis-insights/appealing-to-cbd-consumers-interests-in-the-cannabinoid/
'Conclusions: Latest available prevalence estimates indicate that a significant proportion of patients in the United States with cancer use cannabis and/or cannabinoids (18.3-40.0%). There is substantial evidence for the effectiveness of cannabis and cannabinoids in treating cancer-related pain; specifically, oromucosal THC/CBD spray. There is conclusive evidence for the effectiveness of cannabis and cannabinoids in relieving chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting; specifically, oral THC.'
https://ascopubs.org/doi/abs/10.1200/JCO.2020.38.15_suppl.12091
'Results: Ninety-six cancer patients (mean age 60.0y (±13.9); 41 (42.7%) males) had at least one follow-up (FUP) and were included in the study. The main cancer types were breast (19.8%), lung (9.4%) and colorectal (9.4%). Adverse events (top three: drowsiness, low energy and nausea) were reported in 28% of patients, with 9% having to stop MC [medical cannabis]. Mean Brief Pain Inventory scores significantly improved between baseline, FUP-2 and FUP-3 for worst pain (5.4± SEM 0.3 vs 4.3±0.3 and 3.7±0.4) and average pain severity (4.2±0.2 vs 3.2±0.3 and 3.2±0.4). Anorexia improved (3.4±0.3 vs 2.2±0.4 and 1.7±0.4), as measured via the revised Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (ESAS-r). ESAS-r wellbeing improved significantly between baseline and FUP-1 (4.4±0.2 vs 3.7±0.2). Between baseline and each FUP, approximately a third of patients dropped their use of concurrent medications (including analgesics, antidepressants and anxiolytics), as measured by the Medication Quantification Scale. Conclusions: The CPP data support the safety and effectiveness of MC as a complementary option for improving pain control, appetite and quality of life in SCC.'
https://ascopubs.org/doi/abs/10.1200/JCO.2020.38.15_suppl.12106
'Ninety percent of those currently using cannabis for pain management said that it provided either moderate or significant relief and 40 percent of subjects reported having decreased their consumption of other analgesic medications following their initiation of cannabis therapy. Pain patients most frequently reported consuming products high in CBD rather than THC.'
https://norml.org/news/2020/07/09/survey-one-in-five-patients-report-using-cannabis-products-for-musculoskeletal-pain
'More than 102,000 Pennsylvanians are now certified to buy medical marijuana. This success shows this program is bringing much-needed relief to patients. Learn more about medical marijuana in PA: http://pa.gov/mmj . #MMJ'
https://twitter.com/GovernorTomWolf/status/1115388853446045696
'New Jersey’s medical marijuana program has seen a 150% increase in the number of patients participating since Gov. Phil Murphy took office early last year, a development that has no doubt bolstered sales at the state’s MMJ businesses.
The program has added 25,500 patients since January 2018 and now has more than 42,500 patients participating, the Democratic governor announced.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/new-jersey-medical-cannabis-patient-count-surges-150-since-january-2018/
'Utah’s biggest health-care provider – Intermountain Healthcare – told its physicians they’re allowed to write medical marijuana recommendations for patients, which could boost the number of potential customers for the state’s upcoming MMJ industry.
According to The Salt Lake Tribune, the organization’s chief physician executive sent a memo to its network of roughly 1,500 doctors, rescinding a previous policy that discouraged them from writing MMJ recommendations.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/largest-health-care-provider-in-utah-greenlights-medical-cannabis-recommendations/
'As a general rule, what’s more, noncompliance is a poor justification for terminating care. If this oncologist has medical reasons for objecting to your friend’s use of cannabis — if he has specific concerns about drug interactions, say — he should explain them. (I’m assuming your friend isn’t enrolled in an experimental protocol.) If it’s just that he disapproves of legal marijuana use, that’s an abuse of the doctor-patient relationship. Patients aren’t obliged to help their doctors enforce a tyrannical demand, so there would be no moral reason your friend should inform him of his cannabis use. Indeed, your friend might want to consider filing a complaint against the oncologist for making this threat.'
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/05/magazine/can-a-doctor-refuse-to-treat-a-patient-who-takes-cannabis.html
'The country saw 568 medical cannabis approvals in November, a 42% increase on-month, bringing the total number of approvals for the first 11 months of 2018 to 2,072, according to the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA), which regulates medical marijuana in Australia.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/australia-medical-cannabis-patient-count-surpasses-2000/
'In the first nine months of 2018, more than 136,000 patients across the state received certifications from 1,070 physicians to receive medical marijuana.
In all, those patients received 174,254 certifications — some could have received multiple certifications — for a host of medical conditions that qualify them to use marijuana. That included 41,143 certifications, or nearly 24 percent of the overall total, for post-traumatic stress disorder.'
http://www.tampabay.com/florida-politics/buzz/2018/12/28/medical-marijuana-use-in-florida-continues-to-grow/
'After 48 weeks of treatment, 85% of patients/caregivers reported improvement in the patient's overall condition on the Subject/Caregiver Global Impression of Change scale.'
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/epi.14628
' (1) The Patient Global Impression of Improvement (PGI-I) scale revealed 80% of patients experienced significant improvement in activity level and symptoms. (2) Five common concussion symptoms (headache, mood, sleep, attention, and dizziness) were evaluated via modified-Likert scale (0 rated as “Much Worse” and 10 as “Much Better”). Moderate improvement (MI) was defined as 7–8 and significant improvement (SI) 9–10. Improvement was greatest in mood (63% MI, 20% SI), sleep (53% MI, 23% SI), and headache (60% MI, 14% SI). (3) Quality of Life after Brain Injury Score (QOLIBRI) scores were obtained on patients who had started MC (46) and those who had not yet (19). Comparison of the groups showed a significant improvement (p = 0.0035) in quality of life in individuals on MC. (4) The routes of administration that produced optimal benefit were 1:1 (THC:CBD) oral tincture at an average dose of 1.5 mL TID for prophylaxis and 20:1 vapor pen for acute pain.'
http://n.neurology.org/content/91/23_Supplement_1/S18.3
'The wait for medical marijuana in Ohio is almost over.
The state medical board told physicians Monday they can now register patients with one of 21 qualifying medical conditions and their caregivers through the state's online registration system.
For thousands of Ohioans, the registry opening marks the end of years of waiting for the state's medical marijuana program to start. And it means dispensaries will open soon. But when the state's first dispensaries open in the coming weeks, there won't be much marijuana on the shelves and it will go quickly.'
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/2018/12/03/ohios-medical-marijuana-patient-registry-opens/2057025002/
'Maryland’s medical marijuana patient pool is growing at a quick rate, providing increased revenue and opportunities for the state’s MMJ businesses.
The head of the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission (MMCC) said state regulators are receiving more than 1,000 applications a week from would-be patients, according to the Hagerstown Herald-Mail.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/marylands-medical-marijuana-program-is-rapidly-developing/
'Patients in the state currently have to pay out of pocket for their prescription pot.
But state Sen. Diane Savino (D-SI/Brooklyn) and Assemblyman Richard Gottfried (D-Manhattan) and pushing a doobie-ous scheme that would require government health-insurance programs such as Medicaid, Child Health Plus, the Essential Plan, Elderly Pharmaceutical Coverage and workers’ compensation to cover weed as they would any other prescription.
“It’s unfair not to cover marijuana when opioids, OxyContin and Ambien are covered,” Savino told The Post. “We have to push the envelope.”'
https://nypost.com/2018/11/22/medical-marijuana-could-soon-be-covered-by-new-york-health-insurance/
'"New York's Medical Marijuana Program has grown quickly since its launch almost three years ago. Nearly 81,000 certified patients and more than 2,000 registered practitioners are now participating in the program," said Health Commissioner Dr. Howard Zucker. "The recommendations in the two-year report are part of the continuous work to improve the quality of this program to help New Yorkers who are suffering from serious and debilitating conditions."'
https://www.health.ny.gov/press/releases/2018/2018-11-14_medical_marijuana_program_two_year_report.htm
'These scores are based on ASA’s annual report entitled “Medical Marijuana Access in the United States”. This report grades the current condition of medical cannabis programs around the country in five categories; (1) Patient Rights and Civil Protections from Discrimination, (2) Access to Medicine, (3) Ease of Navigation, (4) Functionality and (5) Consumer Safety and Provider Requirements'
https://s3-us-west-2.amazonaws.com/truce/ASA+Analysis+of+Replacement+10.25.18.pdf
'Data released on October 20 shows just over 29,000 medical marijuana patients in Montana with providers, which is an increase of about 2,500 since the last time the state released data in July.'
https://kpax.com/news/montana-news/2018/10/23/number-of-montana-medical-marijuana-patients-growing/
'The number of registered patients has jumped by 33% from 60,000 to 80,000 in the past two months. The number approved to receive ID cards also has increased by a third, from 38,000 to 51,000 during the same period.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/pennsylvania-tops-80000-medical-cannabis-patient-registrations/
'Patients showed an average symptom improvement of 3.5 (SD=2.6) on an 11-point scale across the 27 measured symptom categories. Dried flower was the most commonly used product and generally associated with greater symptom relief than other types of products. Across product characteristics, only higher THC levels were independently associated with greater symptom relief and prevalence of positive and negative side effects. In contrast, CBD potency levels were generally not associated with significant symptom changes or experienced side effects.'
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-39462-1
https://news.lift.co/new-market-data-shows-continued-increase-in-enrolment-by-canadians/
'About 34,000 patients have signed up for the program, up from about 12,000 last year, according to industry experts. They also say it’s expected the total could hit 50,000 by the end of 2018.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/a-year-after-hurricane-maria-puerto-ricos-medical-marijuana-program-back-on-track/
'No significant difference was found between both locations in attitude towards legalizing MM [Arizona 92% (85 - 97%) vs. Texas 90% (82 - 95%); p = 0.81] and belief of its usefulness [Arizona 97% (92 - 99%) vs. Texas 93% (86 - 97%); p = 0.33]. Patients preferred MM over current treatments for anxiety [60% (51 – 68%); p = 0.003] but not for pain and depression. Patients who favored legalizing MM were younger (median age 59 vs. 67 y; p = 0.027) and had worse Edmonton Symptom Assessment System fatigue (median 5 vs 3; p = 0.015) and appetite (median 3 vs 0.5; p = 0.004) scores. There was a significant difference among those who have used MM (95%) and have not used MM (88%) in support of legalization of MM (p = 0.024).'
http://ascopubs.org/doi/abs/10.1200/JCO.2018.36.34_suppl.191
'“I feel (the opening) is baby steps for Iowa in the right direction," said Marilyn Isley, an early customer in line at the grand opening. "I’ve seen with my own eyes that there has been lots of problems with the opioid uses in Iowa and hopefully this is a step in the right direction in helping people that need help with different diseases and pain management."
Isley said she had two brothers who each died of cancer and access to medical marijuana "would’ve been a wonderful thing if it had made it before I lost them.”'
https://www.desmoinesregister.com/story/news/2018/12/01/medpharm-opens-des-moines-windsor-heights-dispensary-medical-cannabis-products-iowa-legislature/2173533002/
'Based on the data collected, it can be concluded that an increasing number of Dutch patients are using medicinal cannabis on prescription, while the average daily consumption has remained remarkably stable over many years. This suggests the absence of tolerance or overconsumption in this population. In a future study, we hope to include more details about the prescribed use of cannabis oils, such as the preference of patients for THC versus CBD dominant oils for different medical conditions. We believe that our results presented here will contribute to a better understanding of medicinal cannabis use in the Netherlands and abroad and will help physicians and prescribers around the world to make better informed decisions about their own prescribing of medicinal cannabis products to patients in need.'
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5868329/
'Beyond the problems of fitting within a medical world monopolized by synthetic products, the emergence of marijuana as medicine is not being driven by doctors, scientists, and pharmaceutical companies. It is a grassroots movement driven by the demands of patients already self-medicating with marijuana. The only reason marijuana re-entered our medical landscape is that self-medicating patients commenced litigation claiming that they had the constitutional right to choose this medicine despite the presence of a criminal prohibition. It turns out they were right.'
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/171516350413700101
'The [US federal] government began supplying a handful of patients suffering from glaucoma and cancer with cannabis. The program was then expanded to include HIV-positive patients in the late 1980s. At its height, the program enrolled thirty patients. It stopped accepting new patients in 1992, and only four patients continue to receive cannabis from the federal government. Randall was also a prominent figure in a 1987 lawsuit that led the DEA’s chief administrative law judge to conclude that marijuana is “one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man.” The decision was, of course, ignored by the DEA. Such frustrations led legalization activists to turn to the polls and state ballot initiatives.'
http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/1536504215613999
The medical patient, pharmacist and researcher's conundrum...To be high or to be low? THC makes you high or makes you low? CBD makes you high or makes you low? Are you high or are you low? Is high good and low bad or is low good and high bad? What is high and what is low? Am i higher than you or lower than you? Do you and I maintain the same altitudes all the time or do we fly at different altitudes at different times?
'“While precise mechanisms remain to be elucidated, the finding that low doses of CBD may potentiate effects of THC has significant implications for consideration of proportions of THC and CBD that may be recommended within plant matter. With cannabis increasingly being used for medicinal purposes, it is important to ensure that harms are minimized in favor of boosting therapeutic properties. While intoxication per se is not necessarily harmful overall, it is not welcome by many clinical patients, and it may be harmful in situations such as driving under the influence of cannabis.”'
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/marijuana-study-cbd-can-actually-enhance-rather-than-counteract-high-caused-by-thc/
'The Providence Journal reports area doctors, including those in nearby Massachusetts, have written recommendations for MMJ to the more than 18,000 registered patients, helping to spur momentum for efforts to expand the number of medical cannabis retail stores in Rhode Island.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/rhode-island-medical-cannabis-sales-hit-new-highs/
'Out-of-state medical marijuana users next year will be able to buy cannabis products at dispensaries in Hawaii. The only hitches: Visitors will need to apply online and pay $45 (plus a $4.50 processing fee) for a temporary Hawaii medical marijuana card that’s valid for 60 days.'
http://www.latimes.com/travel/la-tr-hawaii-medical-marijuana-reciprocity-20180822-story.html
'Data shared with Marijuana Business Daily by the New South Wales health regulator shows that 322 applications for medical marijuana have been approved since the state made it easier for doctors to prescribe cannabis in March. That helped boost the number of patients in the country to more than 1,000 for the first time.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/australia-significant-cannabis-patient-growth/
£2,500 is a huge amount of money for 3 months of herb and the supply needs to be imported from the Netherlands. Home growing of the organic varieties for personal consumption is much more affordable healthcare. Legalize adult recreational marijuana through home growing for personal consumption UK...when more people grow it at home naturally, good quality plants and varieties will become widespread like your regular garden herbs...
'Carly Barton, from Brighton, who suffers constant pain from fibromyalgia following a stroke in her 20s, was given a prescription by a private doctor who specialises in pain management.
The NHS is not funding the treatment, so she is having to pay £2,500 for three months' treatment herself.'
https://news.sky.com/story/woman-becomes-first-uk-patient-to-get-cannabis-prescription-11570006
'So, excuse us if we put more stock in what patients say than in discredited “reefer madness” warnings from those who would make criminals of Eric Crawford of Mason County and many other Kentuckians who say they find greater relief in illegal cannabis than in the legal treatments they have tried.'
https://www.kentucky.com/opinion/editorials/article224079695.html
'"Where I think it could be helpful, with patients who are going through chemotherapy, etc. I'm open-minded about it," said Holcomb, on the Hammer and Nigel Show on WIBC. "The Dept. of Justice says it's a crime to grow marijuana. They're looking the other way."'
https://www.wibc.com/news/local-news/holcomb-says-hes-now-open-minded-about-medical-marijuana
As the world increases the number of prescription drug cocktails required to treat an illness, as antibiotics hit a wall in the fight against drug resistant bacteria, as the costs of medical treatment spirals, as the ill effects of pharmaceutical drugs start taking effect, as the death toll rises from the ineffectiveness and improper usage of pharmaceutical drugs, there is a new phenomenon emerging. Well, actually its not a new phenomenon but an old one being rediscovered. Its called the second coming of cannabis. The plant which was prohibited for nearly a century worldwide is starting to make its presence as a medicine felt once again. Increasing numbers of people worldwide who have become sick of the ineffectiveness of pharmaceutical drugs are enrolling themselves as patients for medical cannabis. The lists of qualifying conditions for medical cannabis is in the number of two dozen or more in many US states and continues to grow by the day. More than 30 US states and more than a dozen countries worldwide now recognize cannabis as a form of medical treatment. Some of the key conditions for which cannabis is being used are pain management, cancer, PTSD, epilepsy, autism, multiple sclerosis, general medicine, etc. Some of the key patient demographics are the elderly, cancer patients and army veterans. In spite of all this, the US federal government continues to keep cannabis in Schedule 1 status and the UN continues to keep cannabis in Schedule 4 status which implies that these bodies view cannabis as a harmful substance with no known medicinal value. Worldwide billions of potential beneficiaries of the medicinal properties of cannabis continue to suffer due to lack of access to the herb, due to its high costs status and the negative information that has been spread about it. Most of these people are from poor countries or ruled by authoritarian and coercive governments that use cannabis illegal status to back big pharmaceutical companies and to keep the herb away from people.
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