People with a prescription will be able to pick up medicinal cannabis from a pharmacy under legislation introduced in New Zealand today.
The law change will ensure terminally ill people with less than 12 months to live won’t be prosecuted for having illicit cannabis. Although it is not legal for them to use cannabis, they won’t be criminalized for doing so.
Health Minister David Clark said the compassionate measure legalizes what some people are already doing, and will ensure no prosecutions while the new prescribing framework is set-up.
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Much of the detail of how the new scheme will work is still unclear, but it aims to make medicinal cannabis more readily available for people with terminal illnesses or chronic pain.
An advisory committee will review the requirements for prescribing medicinal cannabis products, including the requirement for a doctor to apply to the Ministry of Health for approval to prescribe products containing THC.
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