The German parliament has adopted an amendment to drugs regulations that will make marijuana legal for severely ill people. Prescriptions for cannabis products are to be covered by patients\u2019 health insurance.<\/p>\n
The proposed draft bill put forward by the Health Ministry was unanimously adopted in the Bundestag (German parliament) on Thursday.<\/p>\n
\u201cAccording to the draft law of the federal government, patients should be able to obtain dried cannabis and cannabis extracts of controlled quality in pharmacies,\u201d a statement released by the Bundestag on its official website says.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo ensure the supply, the growth of cannabis for medical purposes in Germany will be allowed,\u201d it continues.<\/p>\n
The law provides for a new state-run \u201ccannabis agency\u201d to be set up to manage and control cultivation and distribution of the drug. The self-cultivation of cannabis will still be prohibited, and although private producers will have a chance to apply for a permit to grow marijuana, there will be strict requirements in place.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a further step towards the improvement of palliative care,\u201d Health Minister Hermann Groehe said, commenting on the parliament\u2019s decision, Der Spiegel reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n Patients currently have to overcome various bureaucratic hurdles and pay heavy prices to gain access to cannabis for therapy \u2013 a procedure dubbed as \u201cthe government\u2019s denial of assistance\u201d by Frank Tempel from the Left Party, according to Focus.<\/p>\n The price for a month\u2019s supply, almost always paid for by the patient, could be up as high as \u20ac1,800 (over US$1,900), Die Zeit reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n Though the changes will concern only a small group of patients suffering from severe, chronic diseases, the move looks to be a big step when compared to the current 1,020 people across the whole of Germany who have been allowed to use marijuana to ease their pain.<\/p>\n Along with the legalization, Germany is also planning to launch research to study the positive effects of such therapy, the appropriate dosage of the drug, and also its side effects. For this purpose, anonymous data on patients is to be transferred to the Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM).<\/p>\n