Medicinal cannabis 'red-tape' pushing doctors and patients back to illegal products
By political correspondent David Lipson 16/8.17
Brisbane father Steve Peek says cannabis oil
has helped control his daughter Suli's
seizures.
A mountain of red tape for legal medicinal
cannabis is forcing the families of seriously ill
patients back into the black market, according
to doctors and advocates.
Key points:
• Patients say legal medicinal cannabis
remains difficult to access
• "Onerous, complex" regulation part of
the problem, lawyer says
• Government insists turnaround times
"often as little as two days"
He said he had been left with no option but to
administer an illegal product every six hours.
"They say it's been legalised. It's not
legalised. You can't get it no matter what you
do,"
"I've lost faith in the political system.
I've lost faith in the Government.
I've lost faith in the medical system and it's
devastating, honestly."
Mr Peek said illegal cannabis oil had reduced
the number of Suli's seizures by 90 to 95 %
Sydney GP Brad McKay said he had tried at
length to prescribe the medicine for his
patients but had been blocked at every turn.
"It just seems that so many obstacles are being
put in place of GPs and specialists that it's
creating an impossible situation," Dr McKay.
"It's been in excess of 30 to 40 hours that I've
put in over a four-month period.
I've spoken to GP colleagues and they look at
me and say, 'Why are you prescribing it? It's
too difficult. It's too convoluted'."
He said layers of state and federal regulation,
often duplicated, meant he had been unable to
get approval to administer medicinal cannabis
to several sick patients.
"They're vomiting, they're in pain, they're
having seizures," Dr McKay said.
"These are kids and we [have] a situation that
prevents doctors from prescribing them a drug
that's less harmful than a lot of the other drugs
they use."
'It's not legalised', frustrated father says
For two years, Brisbane father Steve Peek has
been unable to get access to legal medicinal
cannabis oil to relieve his daughter Suli's
seizures.
"Cannabis doesn't cure her but it gives her a
reasonable quality of life and nobody has the
right to take that away from her," he said.
'Layers of regulation' causing headaches,
lawyer says
Teresa Nicoletti, a partner at the law firm
Mills Oakley, is now working full-time
helping doctors and patients like Suli navigate
the complexity of regulation and legislation
for medicinal cannabis.
She said the health of patients was potentially
being put at risk by the Government's cautious
approach.
"The legislation is quite onerous compared to
a lot of legislation we deal with," she said.