The Pennsylvania Health Department has added addiction to its list of qualifying medical marijuana conditions, making it the first and only state in the nation to approve such a measure and to acknowledge MMJ to be useful in the treatment of opioid use disorders.
Pennsylvania Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said this form of treatment won’t be the first and only option for people in recovery, but it could be an option for some.
“In Pennsylvania medical marijuana will be available to patients if all other treatment fails, or if a physician recommends that it be used in conjunction with traditional therapies,” Dr. Levine said in the PhillyVoice.
“By adding opioid-use disorder as an approved medical condition under the program, we not only give physicians another tool for treatment of this devastating disease, but we allow for research to be conducted on medical marijuana’s effectiveness in treatment,” said Levine. “Only approved conditions under the law can be studied through our research program.”
At the moment Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana program covers 17 medical conditions. As of May 17th, that number will go up to 18, according to a news release.
More Research at Universities
The Department of Health also issued licenses to eight local universities to begin research on medical marijuana.
“The research component of Pennsylvania’s medical marijuana program sets it apart from the rest of the nation,” said Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf on the state’s official website.
“Today, medical research is so limited by the federal government that only a few doctors can even have access to medical marijuana. Pennsylvania’s premiere medical schools will be able to help shape the future of treatment for patients who are in desperate need not just here, but across the country,” added the governor.
Source: The Weed Blog
