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Austrian parliamentarians reject the use of cannabis flowers in medicine

Published

7 years ago

March 29, 2019

Austria legalized medical cannabis in 2008, and 40,000 patients currently have a prescription for medical cannabis. It is available only in the form of pharmaceutical products or compounded medications. Following the publication of a report by the Health Council, members of the National Council (the lower house of the Austrian Parliament) have just decided that there was no need to get permission for the flowers.

A report that has not been universally accepted

The report A report commissioned by Health Minister Beate Hartinger-Klein was submitted to lawmakers yesterday. The Council’s experts believe there is insufficient evidence of the medical benefits of cannabis flowers compared to those of cannabis-based medicines already available (Sativex and Dronabinol), and therefore there are no obvious reasons to make them available. They also believe that there is not enough evidence of CBD’s effectiveness to justify its reimbursement.

The Minister of Health emphasized that, due to the lack of medical and scientific evidence, the strict guidelines for health approval had not been met: «The best medical care and the safety of Austrians are my top priority. For this reason, changes in this area are made exclusively on the basis of scientific findings. Anything that does not fall under this category constitutes experimentation that I cannot tolerate as Minister of Health,» she stated.

Some members of the opposition consider the report to be incomplete and point to the example of Germany and the Netherlands, both of which allow the use of flowers. Maurice Androsch (SPÖ) criticized the report’s superficiality; Gerald Loacker (NEOS) called it arbitrary and unfounded; and Daniela Holzinger-Vogtenhuber (NOW) even spoke of a «concealment of scientific evidence.» The opposition even went so far as to propose a resolution calling for a counter-study by an independent body, but it did not receive majority support. Indeed, among the criticisms leveled at the report is the questioning of the neutrality of the Medical Council, which is a body under the auspices of the Ministry of Health. The Minister of Health, for her part, denied any political maneuvering.

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Peter Kolba, a cannabis activist and president of the Consumer Protection Association, also criticized the report: «The 1.5 million patients suffering from pain in Austria must unfortunately face the fact that the government is not prepared to support them by legalizing a pain treatment that would bring them relief.» His association has launched a petition addressed to the European Union calling for the legalization of medical cannabis. She had recently launched A petition calling for the regulation of CBD, which was recently banned in Austria in food and cosmetic products based on the «novel food» regulations».