Mum’s appeal for son’s medication
THE mother of a young Arklow man who suffers from chronic pain is appealing for help to cover the cost of his prescription of medical cannabis from the Netherlands.
Ryan Fowler, 20, ran out of his supply last week and his mother, Pamela, has been unable to travel because she is herself recovering from illness.
On Monday, the Minister for Health Simon Harris announced an initiative to help patients who have a Ministerial licence for medical cannabis products get an emergency supply of their prescription delivered from the Netherlands.
However, the family still face a bill of €2,925 for a threemonth supply of Ryan’s prescription.
Speaking to this paper, Pamela said ‘normally we would have to travel to The Hague every 11 weeks to collect his medicine from a specific pharmacy, I’m not long out of hospital with viral meningitis so we can’t travel to get it. As I’m named on his licence to import it, nobody else can go over and get it. Another family member can’t say “I’ll go over and get it for me”. It doesn’t work like that because you need to show your paperwork to Customs coming back.’
Pamela said she has been contacting the Department of Health for the last two weeks to ask for alternative arrangements to put in place for Ryan’s prescription to be collected.
Ryan has a rare genetic condition called Gardner Syndrome and an associated tumour in his back which can cause him severe pain. Pamela said the family, who are in self isolation at their home, are extremely worried that Ryan’s pain may get worse. If this happens, he would need to be re-admitted to hospital.
‘His pain has started back. It’s only minor at the moment but, if it increases he’ll be looking at being re-admitted into hospital to be treated with opiods which is not what he wants. He’s nearly a year pharma-free which is his right to choose.
Ryan is on his second licence for medical cannabis, which is due to expire in May.
‘Leo Varadkar said on the TV, no person will go without their medicines. But there are people going without that they are not taking care of. It’s a small group but they are not taking care of them.’
Pamela has also been campaigning for the cost of Ryan’s prescription to be refunded by the Department of Health and met with the Minister for Health and Wicklow TD Simon Harris to discuss this. Currently, the family pay privately at a cost of €975 for one’s month of Ryan’s prescription and Pamela said that they struggle to pay this amount. The Department had previously declined to cover the cost of the prescription as it does not fall under the exempted categories.
‘Ryan will never fall into any category because his illness is so rare. There has to be exceptions made. He has a medical card because he has a long-term illness that’s recognised,’
On Monday, Minister Simon Harris said in a statement, ‘I am aware that the limited number of patients who avail of a Ministerial licence for medicinal cannabis products issued under section 14 of the Misuse of Drugs Acts have been encountering difficulties with access owing to travel restrictions and people’s need to self-isolate.
‘I am very glad we have been able to make arrangements to have an emergency supply of their products collected for them in Holland, where the products are supplied, and to have the products delivered to the patients in Ireland. Patients and their clinicians are now being contacted by the Department in order that these arrangements may be put in place.’
While a courier will bring a supply of Ryan’s prescription to the family’s house, they must still contact the pharmacy in The Hague by email and pre-pay online.
Speaking on Monday after the Department of Health’s announcement, Pamela said the move ‘ helps but we need to get the money to pay for the prescription.’
Pamela has set up a GoFundMe page to help cover the cost of a three month supply of Ryan’s prescription as ‘we are not sure how many times this might happen so we are trying to get some breathing space,’ she said.
Taking medical cannibas has transformed Ryan’s quality of life, Pamela said and his medical team are backing the continued use of the treatment.
‘His consultants are saying that the change is absolutely phenomenonal. Ryan has a number of consultants and they are all backing his continued treatment with medical cannibis. They are amazed by him.
‘ This time last year, Ryan was like a zombie, He was so out of it on tablets, now with his medical cannibis, he can function right.’
Ryan has an offer of a carpentry apprenticeship and worked part time over the Christmas period, something Pamela said he would not have been able to do before.
‘Even with the opiates, the pain was never manageable. When he hasn’t been in any pain, he’s been living a normal life like every 20–year-old man should be.’