Brazil Looks To Home Grows To Expand Medical Marijuana Access, But Is It Enough?

Brazil’s Committee of Social Affairs (Comissao de Assuntos Sociais) of the Senate approved a bill this week that would legalize home growing of medical marijuana – a move that highlights the need for better and more affordable access to MMJ products in the South American country.

Only patients, patients associations or relatives would be authorized to grow and produce medical marijuana if the measure becomes law.

Currently, the only legal way of accessing medical marijuana in Brazil is to import product individually, with approval on a case-by-case basis .

Because importing products is so expensive, home growing would increase access to a large number of patients that “today can’t even dream of having access to legal imported cannabis,” Margarete Brito, general coordinator of APEPI, an association of medical cannabis patients, told Marijuana Business Daily.

“This means that businesses looking for commercial opportunities trying to export to the Brazilian market should keep in mind that price is a critical issue and the vast majority of patients can’t afford imported products with today’s prices,” Brito said.

But not everyone is convinced that allowing home growing will solve the problem of access.

Marcelo De Vita Grecco, CEO and co-founder of Centro de Excelencia Canabinoide, a platform that provides medical cannabis education in Brazil, told MJBizDaily that he appreciated the government trying to find a solution, but “patients should have access to standardized and safe products, and cultivating at home is too risky.

“(It’s) also highly inconvenient, like wanting to make your own olive oil. Imagine having to squeeze your own olives every time you want fresh oil,” he said.

Though this a significant legislative step, the bill now heads to the Committee of Constitution, Justice and Citizenship of the Senate (Comissao de Constituicao, Justica e Cidadania).

After that, it will be discussed in the Senate plenary and the Chamber of Deputies.

The commission noted that roughly 2 million Brazilians suffer from epilepsy. About 600,000 of the cases are refractory epilepsy, and medical marijuana is their only solution.

The bill would modify Law 11,343 of 2006 to allow home growing of MMJ in quantities justified by medical prescription, as well as the importation of seeds and plants.

Alfredo Pascual can be reached at [email protected]

Original Article Source: https://mjbizdaily.com/brazil-looks-to-home-grows-to-expand-medical-marijuana-access-but-is-it-enough/

Comments

Mormon Church Faces Potential Lawsuit Over Medical Marijuana Opposition

Political committees concerned with marijuana law reform in four states have waged an information war over the past year, first to qualify cannabis initiatives for the ballot, and then to support or oppose those measures in the lead-up to last week’s midterm elections. In total, over $12.9 million in cash and in-kind services was spent attempting to convince voters about these marijuana ballot measures. Now that voters have had their say, Marijuana Moment decided to calculate how much each “yes” and “no” vote cost the committees on either side of the debate. Our calculations are based on dollars raised and disclosed before the election, since final totals of actual expenditures won’t be available until December or January reports required in the states that voted on cannabis. Michigan In Michigan, where voters approved marijuana legalization , our calculations show that the two anti-legalization committees spent about $1.28 per “no” vote, as they raised $2.37 million for ...

Could CBD Lead To The Development Of Safer Antipsychotic Medications?

Antipsychotic medications are important for managing a number of different psychiatric ailments, including bipolar disorders, schizophrenia, and even dementia. These drugs can greatly improve the manageability of symptoms that often distort one’s experience of reality. They can also create major mood disruptions and lead to a number of behavioral and emotional difficulties. Antipsychotic and anti-psychosis medications can be life-changing for people with such disorders, enabling them to live more normal and manageable lives without their symptoms taking over. These drugs work by regulating neurotransmitters in the brain so that naturally occurring imbalances and dysfunctions no longer disrupt mental and emotional processes. Often, reaching this outcome is much easier said than done; it can take a lot of time to find courses and combinations of treatments that work. It’s sometimes necessary to make adjustments to find the right balance for the individual and it’s not unusual for outc...

NY Dem Chair Warns Against Passing Voter-Supported Marijuana Legalization Bill

The head of New York’s Democratic Party said on Thursday that if the state Senate votes on a marijuana legalization bill, his party’s lawmakers run the risk of alienating voters and losing reelection next year. Jay Jacobs, the state party chairman, claimed that several “far progressive” measures, including cannabis legalization, lack popularity in certain areas across the state such as Long Island and upstate New York. He cautioned lawmakers against putting the issue to a vote, arguing that voters would “throw us out of office.” “It could be the straw that breaks the camel’s back,” he told Newsday. Polling doesn’t support that conclusion, though. According to a March 2019 survey from Quinnipiac, 65 percent of New Yorkers are in favor of allowing adults to legally possess cannabis for personal use. That includes 63 percent of respondents in upstate New York and 65 percent of those living in the suburbs. Sixty-six percent of independents statewide also back ending marijuana prohibit...

Norma Pence

Search This Blog