CityNews – Dr. Somsak Anakasilp, Director-General of the Medical Department announced that the department is currently mapping out the marijuana needs of patients across Thailand in order to match with supplies and personnel.
There have been seminars and workshops conducted nationwide on best practices and safe medical marijuana usage with data coming from the Food and Drug Administration and the Thailand Red Cross.
The web site www.cbd-oss.org opened up for registration between 13th-21st May so that patients can register themselves as users of medical marijuana online, as well as register their possession of marijuana. A total of 139,977 people registered, with a total of 31,177 completing the process with the proper documentations. The Food and Drug Administration will follow up and continue the checking process.
The five provinces with the most patients registering marijuana possession were Nonthaburi, Nakorn Rachasrima, Chiang Mai and Prathum Thani.
The reasons most people registered the need for marijuana were stated to be for cancer, bipolar, depression and Alzheimer’s. Currently medical marijuana use is officially recognised for only four diseases: patients suffering from post-chemotherapy nausea, epilepsy in children, muscle atrophy and nerve deterioration, and untreatable nerve pains. Other diseases will be added to the list as more research data is gathered.
Patients of the four recognised diseases will be able to apply for medical marijuana at hospitals nationwide as soon as professional training and systems have been set up.