Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine legalized medical cannabis
The government has already prepared a legal framework to ensure a full cycle of production of cannabis-based drugs in Ukraine: from cultivation and processing to full-fledged production.
This was announced by Minister of Health Viktor Lyashko.
The text of the bill is not publicly available. Lyashko only stressed that officials had prepared a “legislative basis.”
The government understands the negative consequences of the war on the mental health of Ukrainians.
“We understand the number of people who will need medical treatment as a result of this exposure. And we understand that there is no time to wait,” – said the Minister.
He also noted that cannabis drugs are not ‘competitors’ of drugs, and measures to regulate their circulation are completely different. Because medical cannabis contains cannabidiol, which does not show a pronounced psychoactive effect, it is not interesting for recreational use.
However, the Cabinet of Ministers still proposes to establish strict control over the cultivation, production and sale of cannabis-based drugs, taking into account the sensitivity of this issue in society.
Cannabis-based drugs will use:
- to reduce pain, cramps and muscle cramps;
- for the treatment of anorexia;
- post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and anxiety disorders;
- certain types of epilepsy;
- glaucoma;
- psoriasis;
- parkinsonism;
- multiple sclerosis.
It will be recalled that last year, the Verkhovna Rada tried unsuccessfully to legalize medical cannabis. According to the authors of the bill, which sent for revision, the legalization of medical cannabis in Ukraine is waiting for 2 million patients.
Last year’s legalization was not supported, despite calls from the Ministry of Health, a number of public figures and activists. This was demanded, among others, by the mother of a four-year-old girl with severe epilepsy, Victoria Mostovenko. Due to the current ban, she is forced to look for ways to buy medical cannabis oil for her daughter, which is allowed in 60 countries around the world, but not in Ukraine.
