Medical Cannabis Effective for New Zealanders

​But Are the Costs Sustainable?

What happens early, happens often.  In California, we’ve realized for quite some time that Cannabis is effective medicine. Our laws have progressed to make Cannabis more accessible, yet some things haven’t changed.  Cannabis patients continue to exchange personally grown Cannabis at a high rate.  Personal gardens are an immediate solution to high cost, low quality dispensary products.  Can’t start a garden or don’t have a green thumb?  Find a neighbor who is willing to share or better yet, sign up for a MediCann Membership and join their Patient Exchange Program.
 
Researchers in New Zealand are just discovering what we already know in California.  They interviewed 213 people enrolled in New Zealand’s Medical Cannabis program. Participants were asked about the quality of Cannabis they used and its effectiveness. Findings were published in the journal Drugs, Habits, and Social Policy.
 
As high as 96% reported that cannabis helped them with their medical conditions. Almost half (49%) said they were able to reduce or stop taking prescription drugs.  Sounds to me like competition for the pharmaceutical industry.  The most common therapeutic use of medical cannabis was pain relief where 96% of participants said it helped reduce their pain. Cannabis also helped those who had difficulty sleeping (97%) and those with mental health issues (98%). Of the participants who took Cannabis for other reasons, such as autism, attention deficit disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, and difficulty eating, 98% found it helpful.
 
According to co-author Geoff Noller,"This both reinforces that they experienced some actual effect from using Cannabis in that they ceased or decreased other medications with recognized efficacy, and in the case of many of these other medications, they reduced their use of potentially more problematic medications.”  Do we need more study? Sure.  But the empirical evidence is clear.  As medicine, Cannabis works.
 
Many New Zealanders find medical cannabis difficult to obtain, relying on the personal or illegal market.  According to another study, only 6% of Kiwis who use Cannabis acquire it through their medical cannabis program.  Many New Zealand doctors won’t prescribe medical cannabis.  There are a limited number of products on the market, keeping prices high. CBD oil in New Zealand can cost a patient $150-350 per month, with other Cannabis products costing even more. 
 
"At present, current regulations create problems for many New Zealanders who otherwise report positive benefits from their use of medicinal cannabis,” says Noller.
 
In my opinion, Cannabis users are spun by mainstream industry that has yet to decide how to capitalize.  Legal products are scarce, in poor quality, and their costs are high, in New Zealand, in California, everywhere.  The current cost of one gram of flower per day can be on average $300 per month or more.  According to CESC Dosing ProjectTM results, pain or disordered sleep best improve with a smoked or vaporized dosage of 1 gm.   These costs are not sustainable for those with low means and who require treatment every day.