ACT proposal could decriminalise cannabis use for seriously ill patients as support for the movement gains momentum nationally  

It would allow cannabis use among terminally ill and chronic pain suffers

In what could become an Australian-first if successful, laws legalising cannabis for medical use by the terminally ill or those suffering chronic pain are being proposed in the ACT.

The move has been met with support from across Australia, including the family of Tamworth man with terminal bowel cancer and a Brisbane mother whose young daughter has suffered from Dravet syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy with no cure, since she was 10 months old.

While cannabis use for pain relief is illegal throughout Australia and can lead to criminal prosecution, if successful the proposal would see people get a permit to grow the cannabis themselves.

Draft exposure legislation and a discussion paper have been released by Greens member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Shane Rattenbury, who has reiterated his proposal does not permit use by the general public, reported the ABC.

'The system is designed to ensure that those people with a genuine medical situation are the only ones who can access it,' he said.

'So there are requirements for both the doctor to give approval, then approval from the ACT Chief Health Officer and a range of other restrictions.'

Mr Rattenbury said although considered controversial by some community members, the proposal aimed to provide compassion to dying people and the seriously ill without the risk and fear of criminal prosecution.

However the ACT's Labor Government has confirmed it will not back the decriminalisation proposal, making the possibility of it passing unlikely.

Yet Mr Rattenbury said there was community support for legalising cannabis on the basis its usage is for medical reasons and the politician plans to show the legislation to the ACT Legislative Assembly on the back of community consultation lasting eight weeks.

While Switzerland, the Netherlands, Canada and parts of the U.S. allow cannabis prescription like other medications, Chief Minister Katy Gallagher confirmed the proposal would be considered.

The move towards decriminalising cannabis for medical purposes has been further propelled by a group of federal MPs demanding a Victorian woman be dealt with compassionately after her home was raided on July 10, reported the Sydney Morning Herald.

The raid of Cassie Batten's Mernda home, north of Melbourne CBD, happened after she did a TV interview about using cannabis oil to treat her son Cooper's epilepsy and Ms Batten and her partner Rhett Wallace had their oil seized and were taken in custody.

Despite being released, the couple could still face multiple criminal charges including drug possession.

The oil was used to treat Cooper's severe brain damage, epilepsy, cerebral palsy, hydrocephalus and cerebral abscesses, a result of contracting bacterial meningitis at four weeks, reported the Herald Sun.

While doctors said they could not treat Cooper's hour-and-a-half seizures, about nine months ago Ms Batten and Mr Wallace started using medicinal marijuana.

The family are among hundreds using cannabis including 24-year-old Tamworth man Daniel Haslam, who is in a four-year battle with terminal bowel cancer.

His parents, Lucy Haslam, a retired nurse, and her husband Lou, a former police officer, have revealed they were forced to break the law and encouraged their son to try cannabis to help relieve some of the side effects of chemotherapy.

After meeting Daniel, Tamworth State National Party MP Kevin Anderson met with NSW Premier Mike Baird in May to discus his plan to introduce a Private Member's Bill allowing the use of cannabis by terminally ill patients, reported The Daily Telegraph.

'I told him (the Premier) about the Haslam family... and the heartbreaking circumstances facing Dan,' Mr Anderson said at the time.

'The Premier was sympathetic and agreed the time has come to address this issue and he supported my bid to work up a private members' bill.'

On Monday, Lucy, Daniel and his wife Alyce met with Mr Baird in Sydney to discuss Mr Anderson's private members' bill, tabled for the second week of August.

'He (Mr Baird) said he would not stand in the way. He went even better than that and said he would support it, Mrs Haslam told Daily Mail Australia.

'He said if it was his wife or children, he would want it (cannabis) available for them - he gave gave me his assurance he would support it.

'We were overjoyed, he was quite sympathetic but to go as far as that was more than we hoped for.'

Mrs Haslam said her son was also ecstatic at the news. 'It is big deal for him to come down to Sydney now, he really hates it. It could not have been worthwhile but it really was.'

She added that with a national drug summit being held in December the issue was not going away.

'I think the public support is there now, that's what is making the difference,' she said. 'There's agitation in Tasmania and Western Australia and even if it doesn't get passed in the ACT... people can see it working in other countries.'

Mrs Haslam delivered a speech to Parliament House in Canberra in June addressing the solace cannabis provides Daniel, unlike others such as antiemetic drugs which are supposed to relieve him from nausea and vomiting induced by cancer treatment.

'As parents of three sons, Lou and I have always been opposed to recreational drug use,' Mrs Harlam said in the speech.

'Yet late last year, in sheer desperation we encouraged Dan to try cannabis and although illegal, we broke the law to obtain it for him.'

But with medicinal cannabis being illegal in Australia, Mrs Harlam was prompted to start a campaign to legalise the drug for terminally ill patients, with a petition, on change.org, has already gained more than 188,000 signatures.

However Health Minister Jillian Skinner said has previously stated her concerns about the safety of crude cannabis and last year the NSW Government block recommendations of a cross-party parliamentary committee who unanimously recommended cannabis should be used by the terminally ill.

Former foreign minister and NSW Premier Bob Carr has also spoke of his support for legalising cannabis for medicinal use.

Brisbane mother Deborah Camacho daughter's, Isabella Camacho, 9, has had her life plagued by seizures as there is no cure for Dravet syndrome, a severe form of epilepsy with no cure, which she has suffered since infancy.

There is also a 20 per cent chance Isabella could die before her 18th birthday.

It has also left Isabella with behavioural problems such as speech delay and movement and balance issues, but the most significant impact on her life is her daily seizures which can last up to 45 minutes.

Since feeding Isabella two milligrams of cannabis a day, the Brisbane mother said her daughter's life has been turned around and her seizures have drastically improved.

Ms Camacho has applauded Mr Rattenbury proposal and called for better education about the medicinal uses of cannabis.

'It should also be children with seizure disorders not controlled by mainstream medication,' she told Daily Mail Australia.

'I think the proposal is a big leap forward - it (medicinal cannabis use) is becoming more acceptable.'

Ms Camacho said she was also open to the idea of people have permits to grow the cannabis. although through her experiences with her daughter, the cannabis has not been smoked.

She 'definitely' hopes to see similar proposals put before the Queensland Government.

Advocating the used of cannabis for medical purposes, Ms Camacho said Isabella's seizures had been 'horrific'.

Taking part in a variety of support groups, Deborah even placed a video of one of Isabella's seizure online in which she can be heard trying to organise her other children for the afternoon so she could accompany Isabella to the emergency room - a standard everyday procedure for the family.

She recently placed Isabella on a non-government pilot study run by de-registered Sydney doctor Andrew Katelaris, which is testing the effectiveness of CBD cannabis in treating children with severe epilepsy.

Since feeding her daughter two milligrams of marijuana oil each day, Deborah says she has seen an enormous improvements. Isabella's extreme 45-minute seizures were reduced from three a week to just one every month.

'She was becoming much more awake - it's like her brian is waking up, it's amazing,' she said.

'She has been able to endure all day whereas I'd be rushing to school to pick her up each day when she has a seizure.

'Her speech is improving, she's even able to sing songs now - she's sounding like a teenager actually, singing all these love songs!

'Her appetite has improved greatly, she's more alert more aware and more happy now. She was always crying on this other medication, like real tears too like she had depression, and now she's just happy.'

Dr Katelaris, who supplies the marijuana, told the Daily Mail Australia that the cannabis used to treat the seizures did not contain the THC chemical that intoxicated users and made them 'high'. Instead, the strain contained the non-intoxicating CBD chemical, he said.

'They're both cabanoids but THC is considered the intoxicating version while CBD has anti-inflammatory effects - that's why its so useful in brain disorders and it has been proven to reduce dementia in dementia suffering animals at Sydney University,' he said.

Deborah said she decided to take part in the study after growing tired of constantly trying various medications which had bad side effects such as one which shrinks her daughter's gums.

'One of them is called Frisium which is going to be hell getting her off. It has like withdrawal symptoms that crack addicts go through - I'm highly against drugs,' the Brisbane mother said.

'I just think I'd rather have plant-based medicine for my baby instead of all this crap she's been given over the years that's wrecking her body.'

Despite receiving enormous amounts of criticism for her stance, Deborah refuses to back down from her goal to make medical marijuana available as an alternate treatment in hospital settings.

'A lot of mums are too scared because it's currently illegal, but when you actually stop, read and educate yourself its actually something that's going to help these kids and it is a disgrace that it isn't offered - there's people's lives at risk,' Deborah said.

Dr Katelaris, whose study was triggered by a recent break through in the United States, is also struggling to be given a chance to present his controversial findings.

I want CBD dominant cannabis moved out of the prohibition schedule and approved for medical use because CBD is not only not intoxicating but annihilates the toxic effects of THC,' he said.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2699475/ACT-proposal-decriminalise-cannabis-use-seriously-ill-patients.html 20/07/2014