PATIENTS IN Ireland requiring the use of medicinal cannabis will soon be able to avail of two products to assist with their condition.
In June 2019, Ireland's Minister for Health, Simon Harris, signed The Medical Cannabis Access Programme (MCAP) into law as part of a pilot scheme set to run for five years.
Now, two products from pharmaceutical companies, based in Canada and Europe respectively, have been approved for use as part of the sceheme.
Under the scheme, a medical consultant can prescribe both Aurora High CBD Oil Drops by Aurora Cannabis Enterprise Inc and CannEpil by MGC Pharmaceuticals to assist with the care of any of the following conditions:
- Spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis
- Intractable nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy
- Severe, refractory (treatment-resistant) epilepsy
Chief Product Officer for Aurora, Dr Shane Morris, said:
"We are very proud to be one of the first approved suppliers of medical cannabis under the MCAP.
"We want to acknowledge the efforts made by many people, especially the patients and doctors who have campaigned for access to these medicines.
We look forward to more of Aurora's high-quality medicines being approved, so that more patients can benefit from the MCAP in Ireland. We will continue to work closely with all parties and state agencies to facilitate further availability."
The campaign to have medicinal canabis made available in Ireland was brought into the spotlight in recent years by high-profile cases such as that of Vera Twomey, whose young daughter Ava suffers from a severe form of epilepsy and who was denied treatment by Irish authorities.
According to The Journal, the approval of the products represents only the first step-- the companies will have to apply for a license to bring the product into Ireland, a requirement which is outside the control of the Department of Health.
However, it is believed this process will not take long, meaning patients who require the use of these medicinal products may be allowed to avail of them in a matter of weeks.
