Deputies on Wednesday urged the government to act "
quickly
" to make up for the "
worrying delay
" taken by the long-awaited experimentation with medical cannabis in France, and pleaded for the establishment of a national production chain for this plant. so far illegal.
Read also: Gérald Darmanin once again qualifies cannabis as "shit"
In its progress report, the parliamentary mission in charge of the issue denounced the "
very regrettable delay
" taken by this project, while "
France is lagging behind on the issue of therapeutic cannabis
", already authorized in many European countries.
The government "
did not act in a sufficiently proactive manner
", lamented the president of the mission, the deputy Robin Réda (LR) while presenting the report to the press.
"
For patients today, it is no longer bearable to wait a little longer
", added its general rapporteur Jean-Baptiste Moreau (LREM).
"
France must get out of prehistory when it comes to cannabis, a plant which is a drug but which can also be a medicine
".
The National Assembly authorized in 2019 the experimentation of therapeutic cannabis for at least 3,000 patients suffering from serious diseases such as certain forms of epilepsy, neuropathic pain or side effects of chemotherapy.
It was initially due to start in September, before being postponed to January by the health authorities, who explain having been delayed by the unforeseen events related to the management of the epidemic of new coronavirus.
Last week, fifty doctors and patient associations, worried, demanded "
the publication of the decree (authorizing the experiment) as soon as possible
", in order to offer treatments "
from the first quarter of 2021
".
"
No further delay should be taken,
" the mission insisted on Wednesday, recalling that the authorization issued by the National Assembly was only valid until December 31, 2021.
Mr. Moreau said he was ready to present a bill if the government does not act quickly.
"
Generalization
"
In the meantime, the parliamentary mission issued several practical recommendations concerning the experiment.
As cannabis production is banned in France, the Medicines Agency (ANSM) will first have to select foreign suppliers to import the necessary medicines, which will be in the form of oils, capsules and dried flowers to be sprayed. - cannabis for smoking will be excluded.
To ensure the "
impartial progress
" of the project, the deputies demand to "
give up free
" and to buy these drugs by endowing the experiment with its own budget.
What to avoid that the laboratories limit the variety of products supplied and the suspicions of conflict of interest.
The report anticipates a "
generalization
" of medical cannabis in France and recommends broadening the pathologies for which doctors would be authorized to prescribe when other treatments have failed.
Ultimately, "
700,000 patients
" could resort to medical treatments based on cannabis, according to the report.
Read also: The city of Reims candidate to test the legalization of cannabis
Faced with these needs, the deputies want to develop an "
entirely French sector of therapeutic cannabis
".
Leaving this market to foreign companies would be an "
economic and health aberration
", they say, when many farmers want to produce cannabis.
The mission therefore wants to change the law, which currently prohibits the cultivation of cannabis plants containing more than 0.2% THC - the psychotropic molecule of cannabis - and the harvesting of its flowers.
The regulation of this medical production could then be entrusted to "
a public body
", in charge of controlling "
the quality
" of products and securing their "
storage
", as in Germany.
Finally, the report calls for training all doctors and nurses in the use of medical cannabis, to initiate a reflection on the status of cannabis to allow reimbursement of drugs, and to intensify research to set a threshold. below which patients consuming medical cannabis would be allowed to drive.
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