Medical-marijuana outreach gets rolling
B.C. cannabis producer hopes to give the straight dope to Canadians
Western Canada’s largest licensed medical cannabis producer is launching a cross-country tour next month to put potential customers in touch with doctors who can prescribe it on the spot.
“We’ve found there are a lot of regions in Canada where patients have had trouble finding a supportive physician to access medical cannabis,” said Philippe Lucas, vice-president of patient research and advocacy for Tilray, based in Nanaimo.
“Our goal is to provide information and, where possible, to provide access to medical cannabis to patients who might qualify for it,” he said Wednesday.
Lucas says the proliferation of unlicensed medical marijuana shops in B.C. has nothing to do with Tilray’s tour, which will start June 6 in Nanaimo and end in Ottawa in August with stops in Metro Vancouver from June 10-14. Clients of the federally-sanctioned system want tightly-controlled, uncontaminated cannabis products prescribed by a doctor and delivered by mail to their homes, he says. Patients with such a prescription can travel freely within Canada with marijuana products.
Tilray is among a handful of federally-sanctioned medical marijuana businesses approved by the former federal government. It supplies specialized marijuana strains by mail,
Our goal is to provide information and, where possible, to provide access to medical cannabis.
with detailed information on the products’ composition and effects. Liquid marijuana extracts that can be taken orally are a growing part of the privately-held business.
Most Tilray customers take marijuana for chronic pain, followed closely by mental health problems that include stress, depression, anxiety and post-traumatic stress disorder.
More importantly, in a time of rising deaths due to drug overdoses in B.C., Lucas says a survey of 300 Tilray clients found that 33 per cent who answered a question on drug substitution said they were taking cannabis rather than opioids. A total of 149 participants said they were substituting marijuana for a prescription drug.
Provincial health officer Dr. Perry Kendall declared a public health emergency in April after 200 people died in the first three months of the year from drug overdoses caused by the powerful opioid fentanyl.
Kendall said Wednesday there is some promising evidence that specific strains of marijuana containing higher levels of painkilling cannabinoids — the active agents that include the intoxicant THC — could help with some chronic, long-term conditions, depending on the individual.
American states that have had legalized access to medical marijuana for years have lower death rates from prescribed opioids, he added.
“The suggestion — and it’s only a suggestion — is that people there may be using fewer opioids to manage pain conditions and may be using cannabis as well, so you get lower doses.
“The evidence is not really strong, as I read it. It’s suggestive.”
But Kendall says it is known that opioids aren’t effective for longterm chronic pain so it’s worth exploring alternatives.
For more information on times and locations of the Mobile Cannabis Clinic, go to: tilray.ca