Cannabis relief at last for patients

AUSTRALIANS suffering chronic ailments will get constant access to medicinal cannabis from today as the first commercial shipments of the drug are cleared by customs.

About 2000 units of cannabis oil are being stored in secure and secret warehouses across the country.

ASX-listed cannabis company Creso Pharma and West Australian medicinal cannabis wholesaler Health House received the first inventory of three different types of cannabis oils on Monday evening.

Another shipment arrived in Melbourne yesterday for medicinal cannabis firm Tilray.

The company said about 1000 units of the product were being held in a secure warehouse outside Melbourne.

More shipments are expected to arrive this month, while the government has issued nine licences for Australiangrown cannabis crops – two in Queensland, four in Victoria, and one each in WA, NSW and an unannounced location.

The government last year passed laws to legalise medicinal cannabis for patients with painful and chronic illnesses.

Those illnesses include cancer, HIV, severe epilepsy, motor neurone disease and multiple sclerosis, among others.

But the conditions and ages rules vary from state to state.

Patients wanting access to the drug for relief presently require a letter from their GP or an approved prescriber.

Sufferers will now be able to access the drug from their local pharmacy and not be forced to wait months for a product to enter Australia via legal means or turn to the black market.

Health Minister Greg Hunt said the Turnbull Government was taking strong action to help Australians in severe pain.

“Since our policy was introduced in February, 30 permits have been granted to import medicinal cannabis products from Canada, Switzerland and the Netherlands,” he said.

“The new importation rules are making medicinal cannabis products more readily accessible to Australian doctors where they believe it can provide a clinical benefit.”

Epilepsy Foundation general manager Brendan Lillywhite said the importation and access to products would hugely relieve the burden on families with epileptic children.

“Some families are working at an extreme level of stress – their child could be suffering up to 100 seizures a day,” he said.

“We welcome the fact that governments right across the country and federally are looking seriously at the use of medicinal cannabis and are fasttracking the importation of cannabinoid oil and plants.”

SOME FAMILIES ARE WORKING AT AN EXTREME LEVEL OF STRESS – THEIR CHILD COULD BE SUFFERING UP TO 100 SEIZURES A DAY. BRENDAN LILLYWHITE