Advice on legislation or legal policy issues contained in this paper is provided for use in parliamentary debate and for related parliamentary purposes. This paper is not professional legal opinion.
Briefing Paper No. 10/2004 by Rowena Johns
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This briefing paper outlines the health benefits and detriments of cannabis
use; summarises medical cannabis laws and programs operating in a range of
overseas jurisdictions; and traces the development of a proposal to authorise
the medical use of cannabis in New South Wales.
- Preliminary issues (pages 2-5): Cannabis-related terminology is explained,
from the basic question of the difference between ‘cannabis’ and
‘marijuana’, to the chemical composition of cannabis. Different
methods of administering cannabis are then described, including smoking,
eating, synthetic capsules, sub-lingual spray, and inhaling through a
nebuliser, with some remarks on the advantages and disadvantages of each
method.
- Health effects of cannabis use (pages 6-13): There is evidence that herbal
cannabis relieves the symptoms of: nausea experienced in cancer treatments;
AIDS-related wasting; glaucoma; muscle spasms suffered in multiple sclerosis,
epilepsy and spinal cord injuries; and chronic pain associated with other
medical conditions. However, sustained cannabis use can impair memory,
attention, and psychomotor skills, while smoking cannabis magnifies the risk of
bronchial and respiratory problems and cancers of the lungs, oesophagus and
mouth. There is also increasing evidence of a connection between cannabis use
and mental health problems such as depression and schizophrenia.
- New South Wales (pages 14-21): The Premier of New South Wales, Hon Bob Carr
MP, has indicated his support for enabling cannabis to be legally available to
patients suffering from serious illnesses. A Working Party on the Use of
Cannabis for Medical Purposes completed a report in 2000, recommending that a
trial be conducted. In May 2003, the Premier outlined some key elements of the
plan, including the formation of an Office of Medicinal Cannabis, and stated
that a draft exposure bill would be introduced at the earliest opportunity.
Although the Carr Government has continued to affirm its support for the
project, no further announcements have been made since May 2004. This chapter
also outlines the Commonwealth requirements that New South Wales would have to
meet if marijuana or cannabis medicines were to be imported from overseas.
- Netherlands (pages 22-24): Dutch policy has been relatively tolerant
towards cannabis possession for personal use since the 1970s, including
allowing it to be easily purchased from cannabis ‘coffee shops’.
This may have reduced the need to make specific laws authorising the use of
medical cannabis. However, in 2003 the Netherlands became the first country to
legalise cannabis on prescription for people suffering from serious illnesses.
Patients who have a doctor’s prescription can buy 5 grams of dried
marijuana from pharmacies. The Office of Medicinal Cannabis in the Ministry of
Health, Welfare and Sport, licenses selected companies to grow cannabis on its
behalf under strict conditions, and retains responsibility for distributing the
product to pharmacies and hospitals.
- Canada (pages 25-32): The Canadian Government began granting permits to
individuals in 1999 to possess and cultivate cannabis for medicinal purposes.
After the courts ruled that there were some constitutional deficiencies with
the system, the Marihuana Medical Access Regulations were introduced in 2001.
The Office of Cannabis Medical Access, in Health Canada, administers the
scheme. Applicants must provide a statement from a medical practitioner or
specialist (depending on the type of illness) to obtain an Authorization to
Possess a maximum of 30 days’ supply of dried marijuana. Patients have
three lawful sources of marijuana: gaining a licence to grow their own cannabis
plants; arranging a designated person to be licensed to grow cannabis for
them; or obtaining dried marijuana from Health Canada, which has licensed a
company to cultivate cannabis on its behalf. An additional, unofficial channel
of supply is through cannabis clubs and societies.
- United States of America (pages 33-53): Unlike Canada’s national
program, there is no Federal approval of medical cannabis in the United States.
A number of individual States have introduced their own medical cannabis laws,
beginning with California in 1996, and most recently Vermont in 2004. None of
the States supply marijuana to patients, instead allowing them to possess a
certain quantity of dried marijuana and cannabis plants, acquired by their own
means. These laws give patients, caregivers and doctors protection from State
penalties, but some participants have been prosecuted and even imprisoned for
contravening the Federal Controlled Substances Act. The latest
constitutional challenge to the Federal Government’s exercise of power in
overriding State medical cannabis laws (Raich v Ashcroft) has been
accepted for hearing by the U.S. Supreme Court.
- United Kingdom (pages 54-58): In the late 1990s, the British Medical
Association and the House of Lords Select Committee on Science and Technology
expressed support for the therapeutic use of cannabis. The United Kingdom does
not have a specific medical cannabis program but has been active in conducting
clinical trials. A company named GW Pharmaceuticals developed an oral cannabis
spray and applied for regulatory approval in 2003. A decision has not yet been
made by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.
