{"id":148,"date":"2018-12-14T13:29:45","date_gmt":"2018-12-14T13:29:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/cannabisherald.co\/?p=148"},"modified":"2018-12-14T13:31:46","modified_gmt":"2018-12-14T13:31:46","slug":"new-zealand-forms-laws-to-make-medical-cannabis-widely-available","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannabisherald.co\/new-zealand-forms-laws-to-make-medical-cannabis-widely-available\/148\/","title":{"rendered":"New Zealand forms laws to make medical cannabis widely available"},"content":{"rendered":"

New Zealand’s government has passed a legislation which can make medical marijuana<\/strong><\/a> broadly accessible for tens of thousands of individuals with time, following years of campaigning by ill New Zealanders who say the medication is the one thing that alleviates their pain.<\/p>\n

The laws will also permit terminally ill patients to start smoking illegal marijuana immediately without confronting the prospect of prosecution.<\/p>\n

The health minister, David Clarke<\/strong><\/a>, said tens of thousands of New Zealanders were alive with chronic and end-of-life pain along with the signs that marijuana could help ease their distress was noise.<\/p>\n

The legislation could also pave the way for New Zealand firms to manufacture medicinal cannabis products for both the local and global market, a sector that has been touted as a possible game-changer for disadvantaged M\u0101ori communities around the east coast of the North Island, that aspire to reverse the flourishing illegal sector to a flourishing legal one.<\/p>\n

“Individuals nearing the end of their own lives shouldn’t need to worry about being detained or imprisoned for attempting to control their pain,” Clarke explained.<\/p>\n

“This really is compassionate and affectionate law which will make a genuine difference to people… they could use illegal cannabis without any fear of prosecution”<\/p>\n

The steps come before a planned referendum on recreational marijuana use, and also the government has vowed to hold within a couple of decades, as a part of the confidence and supply agreement with coalition partner the Greens.<\/p>\n

Also Read:\u00a0Aphria to offer Medical Cannabis in Paraguay<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n

The law permits much wider use of medical marijuana, which has been previously been highly limited and subject to acceptance by the health minister.<\/p>\n

The effort to generate marijuana legal applauded the government for passing the laws in their first year in office.<\/p>\n

“New Zealanders will accept this encouragement that we do not have to get stuck in the past,” explained Sandra Murray, campaign director for its #makeitlegal campaign.<\/p>\n

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Today Aotearoa New Zealand finally passed legislation to create a legal, local #medicinalcannabis<\/a> scheme. #nzpol<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/Pwfesu4ncS<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Chl\u00f6e Swarbrick (@_chloeswarbrick) December 11, 2018<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n