A draft law on the legalization of medical cannabis (No. 10313) could be voted on next week in parliament, Member of Parliament and co-author of the bill Oleksandr Opanasenko has said.
“The bill was registered only on May 20 and it was supposed to be voted on May 28. It was on the agenda, but was not brought up by a vote. I hope on June 6 it will be on the top of the agenda and there will be a quorum for the vote to be effective and the bill passed,” he told Interfax-Ukraine on the sidelines of the second International Medical Cannabis Conference (IMCC 2019) in Kyiv on May 31.
The lawmaker recalled that the bill was prepared on the basis of the relevant petition, which received the necessary number of votes, and is a priority for consideration by the Verkhovna Rada.
“This regulation is automatically on the agenda and should be considered at the first plenary meeting,” he said.
Opanasenko said the bill can be adopted by the current parliament in its second reading.
“We will do everything necessary to ensure that this law passes both the first and second reading. And if it is adopted in the first reading, it will move to the next parliament, which will consider it in the second reading. If it is not adopted in the first reading, then members of two parliamentary factions that will definitely be represented in the new parliament have signed it to confirm it would be adopted,” he said.
At the same time, the MP noted that the necessary regulations for the implementation of this law can be developed and adopted within six months.
“Part of the questions will be developed by the Ministry of Health, part by the Interior Ministry. I think some of the issues will be entrusted to the Ministry of Science and Education, because a block of issues in the draft law is connected with scientific research,” he said.
Opanasenko said authors of the bill set themselves the task of maximally included possibilities of using medical cannabis for medical purposes in the current regulatory framework.
“We did not invent any new algorithms and procedures. We wanted to fit into the current system of coordinates as much as possible,” he said.
The MP stressed that the authors of the bill set themselves the task of allowing Ukrainians to receive cannabinoids along with other painkillers and to have access to the latest medical technologies, allow scientists to conduct currently prohibited research in this direction, and also create a raw material base for production of these drugs, including growing medical cannabis.
Opanasenko noted that the law does not provide for budget purchases of medical cannabis preparations.
As reported, the draft law on amendments to the current legislation on ensuring the fundamental right of the individual to life, providing, inter alia, for legalization of the circulation of medical cannabis (No. 10313) was registered by 102 members of different parliamentary factions.
A petition for legalizing medical cannabis placed on the parliament’s website garnered the 25,000 signatures required for consideration over 42 days.
The petition, which was registered on Jan. 30, 2019, called for legislation to regulate access for patients to products with cannabis to treat chronic ailments, epilepsy, anorexia, post-traumatic stress disorder, immune deficiency illnesses, arthritis and rheumatism, among other ailments.
