Numerous reports are appearing stating that Federal Health...

Numerous reports are appearing stating that Federal Health Minister, Greg Hunt, will today announce changes intended to make sourcing of Medicinal Cannabis from overseas easier and quicker, following criticism that with the introduction of Medicinal Cannabis legislation last year, access has become harder.
The change would not legalise the local "black market" supply, currently the most immediate source for untested Medicinal Cannabis preparations to treat, in numerous cases, life-threatening conditions.
Rather it remains within the current Federal legislation and relevant regulations where the Government's stated goal is "Ensuring Safe and Responsible Supply of Medicinal Cannabis". This message was again reinforced in last week's announcement of Prof. James Angus as the Chair of the Advisory Council for Medicinal Cannabis, following his appointment last year as Chair of the Victorian Independent Medical Advisory Committee on Medicinal Cannabis.
It also comes after last week's letter from Bill Shorten to Prime Minister Turnbull seeking for changes to make access easier...
"In the interest of ensuring that patients who benefit from medicinal cannabis have access to a safe, regulated supply of product, I ask you to consider identifying an overseas source and regulating its supply in Australia. This would go some way to ensuring a consistency of supply, giving patients confidence they have access to a safe product, and removing some of the onerous requirements that have emerged through the current arrangements."
The changes are said to be interim measures until local supply can be established. They are purported to permit companies to apply to import medicinal cannabis from a reputable supplier overseas and then distribute cannabis oils and medications locally from a safe, secure warehouse.
It should be noted that 'reputable overseas suppliers' will not include product from the USA or any other countries where cannabis is a federally prohibited substance. It is also not yet clear whether these imported products will still need to meet stringent TGA guidelines for medicinal products such as manufactured under GMP standards and evidence of efficacy, such as clinical trials, for particular conditions.

In this interview reported by the ABC today, Mr. Hunt curiously refers to a private cultivation program for long-term supply with the first licence issued last week.
This licence is a Cannabis Research licence not a Manufacturing licence for product for long-term patient supply.
Cannoperations is licensed to cultivate cannabis to undertake both its own research exploring optimal cultivation and production methodologies and strain development, and to support other research being undertaken into medicinal cannabis products.