A state review panel has recommended that Michigan considerably expand the list of qualifying conditions for which medicinal cannabis can be prescribed. If the panel's advice is followed ten diseases would be added to the current list...
Last week, Michigan's Medical Marijuana Review Panel recommended that the following health conditions also become eligible to be treated with medicinal cannabis: arthritis, autism, chronic pain, inflammatory bowel disease, obsessive compulsive disorder, Parkinson's Disease, rheumatoid arthritis, spinal cord injuries, Tourette's Syndrome, and ulcerative colitis. Presently there are about fifteen diseases and conditions already on the list.
As noted in the article linked below, one of the diseases on the list which has seen a lot of advocacy is autism. Michigan's chief medical executive, Dr. Eden Wells, issued a statement on that particular disease. He argued that, "As noted by the petitioners, there are parents of children with autism that have experienced positive outcomes through the use of cannabinoids. There is increasing experience over the last several years within the scientific community in examining the relationship between cannabinoids and how they may alleviate the symptoms of some severe disorders, including autism."
Shelly Edgerton, the director of Michigan's Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs, has until July 10th to make a decision on the panel's recommendations. It should be noted, however, that in the past a previous director declined to follow the panel's advice. This is the second time that autism, for example, has been suggested as a qualifying condition. Hopefully Mrs. Edgerton will follow the advice of her state's review panel and allow patients and their physicians access to medicine which can help them battle these diseases and conditions.
Marvis Herring's local coverage of the panel's recommendation
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