Lyn Cleaver holds a bottle of cannabis oil used to treat her son Jeremy Bester’s seizures. They have been denied access to medicinal cannabis under Tasmania's new Controlled Access Scheme. Picture: CHRIS KIDD THE mother of a patient denied a medicinal cannabis prescription in the State’s historic first batch of approvals says she has no option but to continue to break the law. Health Minister Michael Ferguson announced this week that two of the three Tasmanian patients who had applied through their specialist to access medicinal cannabis products under the State’s new Controlled Access Scheme could now do so. MORE: CANNABIS PRESCRIBED TO TWO TASSIE PATIENTS Mr Ferguson said in the cas

More than two dozen US states now include post-traumatic stress disorder as part of their medical marijuana programs. When New York decided to let post-traumatic stress disorder patients use medical marijuana, it joined a fast-rising tide of states. Twenty-eight states plus the District of Columbia now cover PTSD as part of their medical marijuana programs. The tally has more than doubled in the last two years. It's happened amid increasingly visible advocacy from veterans' groups, including the 2.2-million-member American Legion. It's pressing the federal government to let Department of Veterans Affairs doctors recommend medical marijuana where it's legal. But others, including th

TEAM LINCOLN: Emily Smith, Paul Fuimaona, Tahlia Lincoln, Labor candidate Nicole Lincoln and Harriette Lincoln at Faith Plainland College polling booth. LABOR Candidate Nicole Lincoln didn't need any curve balls thrown today at her today, but election days rarely go to plan. At 10am the mum of six got a call to say her eldest daughter was having an epileptic seizure. Unbelievably the unexpected fit did not stop Tahlia Lincoln, 23, from coming down to support mum during her final rally at Faith Lutheran College Plainland polling booth. "I'm a bit tired now but I'm here because I want mum to win” Tahlia said. "I didn't want mum to know because I didn't want to let her down and for he

A new hotline is expected to fast track access to medicinal cannabis for palliative care patients in NSW. Doctors will soon have access to the NSW Medicinal Cannabis Advisory Service to help them cut through the regulatory red tape of legally prescribing onshore medicinal cannabis for their patients. Experts will help doctors assess whether a patient might benefit from medicinal cannabis. Photo: AP From January, prescribers across the state will be able to call a hotline that connects them to experts tapped into the latest international evidence-based research in the constantly-evolving field, Health Minister Brad Hazzard announced on Thursday. The experts will help doctors assess whet

Townsville veteran Lee Donnollan suffers from PTSD and will be the first veteran in Townsville to be dispensed medical cannabis. Picture: Zak Simmonds IN a historic moment for Townsville a Defence veteran has been dispensed medical cannabis to medicate post-traumatic stress syndrome for the first time. Lee Donnollan will be given the medication for the first time in Townsville under the special access scheme which gives patients access to drugs not included on the Australian Register of Therapeutic Goods. It’s the culmination of a long campaign for Mr Donnollan who has struggled for access to medical cannabis. He has spent thousands of dollars, months visiting doctors and dealt with re

This Aussie started juicing cannabis leaves in a bid to be pain-free - by Katherine Davison An Australian woman with the debilitating digestive condition Crohn’s disease has opened up about why she turned to cannabis leaves in a bid to ease her pain. Morgan Taylor, 21, penned a heartfelt blog post on the subject which she said ‘has been taboo for way too long’. ‘In the beginning of 2015 my Crohn's disease took a turn for the worst. It was my senior year and should have been one of the best years of my life but ended up being one of the worst,’ Morgan shared. Morgan Taylor (pictured) has opened up about how juicing cannabis leaves helped ease the pain from Crohn's disease. Supplied She sa

Picture: Melissa McDonald/Sydney Morning Herald A Riverina medical cannabis advocate has come out swinging against the recent passing of a private medical cannabis bill, claiming it leaves majority of patients “crying out for help”. Narrandera herbalist and medical marijuana advocate Rach Cregan told The Daily Advertiser despite the positive movement, the bill only catered for one per cent of medicinal cannabis users. “These people are looking for quality of life and crying out to a solution for their pain – they will still be forced to source through black market channels.” “It is great for terminal patients but what are the other 99 per cent supposed to do?” The Greens' private b

Court House Bundaberg Photo: Simon Young / NewsMail "I DITCHED all my medication from the doctor and took up cannabis,” Rodney Kupics told a Bundaberg magistrate. Kupics, charged with drug offences, went on to explain how he suffers kidney disease and found that smoking marijuana helped reduce swelling. The 27-year-old pleaded guilty before Bundaberg Magistrates Court to possession of marijuana on October 11; and possession of utensils used to smoke a dangerous drug. Prosecutor,Sergeant Dean Burgess said a police search of Kupics' home found the drugs and utensils. He said fines were not appropriate because Kupics continued to offend. Magistrate Belinda Merrin noted that those of

Matthew Calanna at the Kirwan Calanna Pharmacy. Picture: Evan Morgan A FORM of medical marijuana will soon be available from a Townsville chemist. Pharmacy group Calanna has confirmed its Kirwan outlet will dispense a medicinal cannabis product which has been approved by the Therapeutics Goods Association in Australia. The spray, called Sativex, is used to improve muscle stiffness for people with multiple sclerosis. Pharmacy owner Matthew Calanna said he understood his group was the first to gain approval for dispensing the product in North Queensland. He said the product would be available only by order and would not be stored on site. Getting access to other medicinal cannabis

The site of a proposed cannabis facility at 1459 Spring Grove Road, Casino. Contributed Google Maps THREE applications lodged with the Australian Office of Drug control have revealed the proposal for a major medical cannabis facility at Casino will now be 20 per cent bigger than it was first announced. PUF Ventures Australia has filed three applications with the Australian Office of Drug Control for the cultivation, production and manufacture of cannabis in the Richmond Valley. The applications, if successful, will allow PUF Ventures Australia to take cannabis from seed to finished product. PUF Ventures Australia chief executive, Michael Horsfall, has also announced that, after further

An example of hemp food derivatives from hemp.com. The Nimbin Hemp Embassy will be offering free samples of hemp seed and hemp seed oil for the rest of the month now that hemp foods are legal for human consumption in Australia. Australian Hemp Party secretary Andrew Kavasilas said as of yesterday it was legal to grow hemp seed in Australia. ‘It’s a watershed moment on many fronts. Hemp seeds’ nutritional qualities are unparalleled so we’ll have a truly healthy food finally available with new farming opportunities including access to an international market that’s touching the $billion mark,’ Mr Kavasilas said. He said jobs were also being created in production, processing, logistics,