NL: Chemists to sell medical cannabis

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Expatica.com

Friday 29 Aug 2003

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AMSTERDAM - Seriously ill cancer, AIDS and Multiple Sclerosis patients will
be able to get a doctor's prescription to obtain medicinal cannabis from
Dutch chemists starting from Monday next week.

Government approval paved the way for chemists to offer two sorts of
cannabis starting from 1 September 2003, with the cheapest batch priced at
EUR 40 per five grams. The other variant is priced between EUR 50 and EUR
55 per five grams.

But pharmacy association KNMP said patients will be required to pay for
their cannabis themselves because the drug is not yet included in the
ziekenfonds health insurance scheme as a claimable reimbursement, a Nu.nl
news report said on Thursday.

The pharmacist-supplied cannabis is more expensive than the marijuana sold
in coffee shops, where users can buy a gram for prices ranging between EUR
5 and EUR 6.

Two Dutch cultivators, The Institute Foundation of Medical Marijuana and
the firm Bedrocan are supplying pharmacists with the cannabis, making them
the first legal suppliers of the drug in Europe. The Bureau for Medicinal
Cannabis which comes under the wing of the Health Ministry inspects the
cannabis for quality control and organises its distribution.

Cannabis can have a positive effect for the seriously ill, such as helping
combat nausea that cancer patients suffer from as a result of chemotherapy
and radiotherapy. It can also help reduce the easting urges that AIDS and
cancers sufferers experience. Furthermore, cannabis use also reduces the
pain and stiffness that Multiple Sclerosis patients suffer from.

The health Ministry said no scientific evidence exists proving the
medicinal effectiveness of marijuana, but research continues. But a joint
ministry-Elsevier survey of 400 family doctors and medical specialists
found that most of them totally approve of the use of cannabis for
medicinal purposes, despite the fact it requires ongoing study.

Various other countries are also considering following the Dutch lead, such
as Canada, 14 US states, the state of New South Wales in Australia, Belgium
and Germany.

[Copyright Expatica News 2003]

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