Lithuania legalizes medical cannabis

Last year, the Lithuanian Parliament took a unanimous decision to reconsider the country's anti-drug laws, and to legalize medical cannabis.

Today, the Parliament of this small Baltic country of just 2.8 million inhabitants has officially legalized the therapeutic use of cannabis. The measure was passed by 90 votes to 51, and is due to be signed into law shortly by President Dalia Grybauskaite. It is due to come into force on May 1, 2019.

Conservative MP Mykolas Majauskas initiated the project, and is delighted with the outcome: «This is a historic decision that will enable patients to receive the best possible treatment (...) Of course, this does not mean that cannabis will be available in pharmacies for smoking before going to a nightclub».

He had also said last September that if he could help people stay off opiate-based drugs, he needed to do so with drugs that produced significantly reduced side effects. In his view, patients shouldn't feel like criminals.

«These are people who are forced to use strong opioids. They are both psychologically and physically addictive. We need to offer patients an alternative. Our responsibility is to provide them with the best possible treatment. Pharmaceutical companies that provide morphine-based pain relief may not be very happy, but EU countries take a different approach and provide medical cannabis treatment«.

The cannabis use recreational use remains prohibited and punishable by a fine and 2 years' imprisonment, and to prevent any abuse, access to the drug will be strictly controlled.

Firstly, the medical marijuana will only be available with a doctor's prescription, and will only be dispensed for certain conditions for which its therapeutic value has been recognized, including multiple sclerosis, cancer and autoimmune diseases.

Secondly, medicines must first be registered in the European Union and licensed by of the Agence nationale de contrôle Lithuanian drug law. Lithuanian law legalizes medical cannabis in flower, resin, extract or tincture form.