Australian MC Legislation - update

Senator Jacqui Lambie will move to allow prescriptions for unregistered treatments
NICK CLARK, FEDERAL POLITICAL EDITOR, Mercury
June 11, 2017 10:00pm
Subscriber only
TASMANIAN Senator Jacqui Lambie will move this week for doctors to be allowed to prescribe unregistered treatments to people with a terminal illness.

Senator Lambie, a supporter of medicinal cannabis, said she was seeking to bring on a controversial disallowance motion to enable the importation of treatments that weren’t readily available in Australia.

“This is a small step towards treating terminally ill people with a little humanity and dignity for their last days on this Earth,” she said.

The disallowance motion is identical to one moved last week by Labor and Greens which caused an outraged reaction from Health Minister Greg Hunt.

“Bill Shorten joined with the Greens to vote in favour of opening the floodgates for dangerous, unregulated drugs to come to Australia,” he said.

“It would have opened the way for personal importation through our airports of hashish and other products that are unsafe, unregulated and even deadly.

Mr Hunt said that it was vital that the Therapeutic Goods Administration had oversight of the medicines brought into the country.

“People have died overseas from unsafe medicinal cannabis products and Labor voted to make that a real possibility in Australia,” he said.

He said Labor voted to remove this safeguard provided by the TGA.

“We’re making medicinal cannabis available in a safe and regulated way for patients in need,” Mr Hunt said.

“By contrast, Bill Shorten has ignored all the advice of medical professionals (including the AMA) and voted to put Australian lives at risk.

He said that the unregulated import of products would undermine local producers of safe medicinal cannabis.

Senator Lambie said the Government should get out of the way and let doctors do their job for patients whether it be children with severe epilepsy or a veteran with PTSD.

“I want to see people with chronic conditions seen as patients, not criminals,” she said.

She is seeking support from four One Nation senators.