State decision correct on medical marijuana

Drug proven to help with post-traumatic stress disorder

I am extremely grateful that New Mexico Department of Health Secretary Retta Ward has decided to support the thousands of patients who find cannabis helpful to manage symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder.

Given that Gov. Susana Martinez stated during her campaign for governor her intent to repeal our medical marijuana law, it is truly remarkable that a member of her administration has demonstrated support for the program in such a clear way.

New Mexico has the best run medical marijuana program in the nation. The program is run by the Department of Health and has Medical Advisory Board consisting of eight experienced physicians from a variety of medical specialties, including psychiatry.

This panel of medical experts voted unanimously to keep post-traumatic stress as a qualifying condition and submitted a very well documented and reasoned report to the secretary that supported their decision.

Today more than 3,700 New Mexican residents with PTSD are actively enrolled in New Mexico’s Medical Cannabis Program. Most of them are military veterans, patients living with disabilities, and victims of serious trauma and violent crime.

Many people, including a large number of military veterans, report that medical cannabis works better to treat symptoms they experience from PTSD than opioid narcotics and prescription drugs. Medical marijuana doesn’t take weeks begin to help like psychotropic medications. And medical marijuana is often tolerated better than the pharmaceutical medications listed which can have severe side effects ranging from nausea and headache, to suicidal ideations, incontinence and lethargy.

Furthermore, emerging clinical evidence from Israel suggests that military veterans with combat stress that is resistant to treatment also are helped by medical marijuana.

Israeli researcher Raphael Mashiah who studies treatment for chronic combat PTSD recently distributed results showing that after receiving medical marijuana, participants experienced significant decreases in severity of avoidance symptoms (like isolation and efforts to avoid remembering trauma), arousal symptoms (like anxiety, anger and nightmares) and emotional stress.

At the same time these veterans showed significant improvement in their ability to engage in pleasurable and productive life activities and in their psychological state.

An assessment of the subjects’ general condition by the evaluating psychiatrists, using the General Assessment Score Test showed a marked improvement. Specifically, an improvement of 45 percent was seen in the general evaluation of the subjects’ psychological state after two months of treatment with medical marijuana.

The decision to keep posttraumatic stress as a condition eligible for medical marijuana was smart, rational, and most importantly, compassionate, in keeping with the intent of the law.

Thanks to Ward for this decision, for not turning patients into criminals. Bravo to the New Mexico Department of Health.

Combat veterans, and all New Mexicans, deserve access to the medicine that works for them.