An Ohio State Medical Board committee recommended adding cachexia, or wasting syndrome, as a qualifying condition for the state’s medical cannabis program on June 10, while rejecting autism and anxiety, according to a Cincinnatti.com report.
The full board is expected to make a final decision on the conditions at its upcoming July meeting, the news outlet reported.
In making their decision, committee members noted that pharmaceutical drugs containing synthetic THC have received FDA approval to treat cachexia, a condition that causes severe weight loss and that can be associated with cancer, HIV or AIDS, according to Cincinnatti.com.
Autism and anxiety were among several conditions that the board rejected last year, but the committee did not explain its most recent recommendation against adding the conditions to the program, according to Cincinnatti.com. However, among the 136 public comments submitted during a public comment period, the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Nationwide Children’s Hospital and the Ohio Children’s Hospital Association voiced opposition to adding autism and anxiety to the program, the news outlet reported, although the majority of comments supported adding the conditions.
