Legal cannabis medicine will only be prescribed to help treat three conditions, according to the Telegraph, contradicting the Government’s statement that “the new law will not limit the types of conditions that can be considered for treatment”.
The newspaper reports that it “understands formal NHS England guidelines, due to be released before 1 November, will advise specialist doctors on prescribing cannabis for epilepsy, chronic pain and nausea caused by chemotherapy.
“Although new legislation technically allows cannabis to be taken for any condition, doctors are expected to strictly follow the guidelines, meaning they are unlikely to prescribe it for conditions other than those listed.”
That means patients who use cannabis medicinally but illegally for cancer symptoms, Parkinson’s disease, PTSD and various forms of IBS, for example, “must wait until full prescription guidelines are published in October 2019 to see if GPs will prescribe for their conditions”.
If true, the revelation adds to an array of reasons, as outlined by UKCSC, as to why Britain’s new cannabis law is not enough for patients.
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