It appears its all steam ahead for the production of medicinal cannabis in Tasmania.
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Tasmanian Alkaloids will soon move into the research and development phase to investigate the most effective way to grow medicinal cannabis at its Westbury site.
A licence was given to Tasmanian Alkaloids to grow medicinal cannabis in May 2017.
Research and development will take about 12 months, before Tasmanian Alkaloids is audited by the Office of Drug Control, which is the final hurdle before production can begin.
Medical cannabis grown by Tasmanian Alkaloids will be used in products to treat the five million Australians living with chronic pain, but the legalisation of the export of medicinal cannabis products in February opened up further markets for the partnership.
While this news might be positive for the state’s agricultural industry, the take-up of the drug for the chronically ill has been slow in Tasmania.
It was revealed this week only six people have been able to access the state government’s controlled access scheme, which gives them access to the pain-relieving drug.
There are nine people still on the waiting list to gain access to the scheme, nearly a year since it opened.
The scheme was officially opened in August 2017.
Greens Franklin MP Rosalie Woodruff said Health Minister Michael Ferguson’s controlled access scheme was “overly bureaucratic, with patients being effectively locked out of access.”
Royal Australian College of General Practitioners president Dr Bastian Seidel said the scheme should be uniform across Australia and allow GPs to prescribe it for patients who had exhausted other options.
Dr Seidel said it was easier to access morphine than medicinal cannabis in Tasmania.
Health Minister Michael Ferguson said “Tasmania has been pushing for a consistent approach” for two years.
“Having national consistency is important to ensure access to these products under appropriate national guidelines,” he said.
It seems that while medicinal cannabis may be gaining traction as an effective and more accepted option for those who are in chronic pain it is still not able to be used as effectively as it is needed.
The losers in this story are still those who live with chronic pain or terminal illness.