Question Period Note: CANNABIS: ACCESS TO CANNABIS FOR MEDICAL PURPOSES FRAMEWORK

The Government is committed to ensuring that individuals who require cannabis for medical purposes have reasonable access to legal and quality-controlled products. The Cannabis Act preserves and builds on the medical access program.

• How will the Government ensure that patients continue to have access to cannabis?
• How is the Government addressing abuses of the medical access system, while ensuring that patients continue to have reasonable access to cannabis?

KEY MESSAGES

• Our Government is committed to ensuring that individuals who require cannabis for medical purposes have reasonable access to legal and quality-controlled products.

• The Cannabis Act provides distinct channels for access to cannabis for medical purposes for individuals who have the support of their health care practitioner.

• Within the framework for reasonable access, we are working to reduce the potential for abuse in partnership with health care profession regulators, municipalities and police.

• The Government continues to actively monitor the medical access program and will evaluate the framework within 5 years of the coming into force of the Cannabis Act.

IF PRESSED ON THE IMPACTS OF THE CANNABIS ACT ON PATIENTS

• When the Cannabis Act and Cannabis Regulations came into force in October of 2018, targeted improvements were made. For instance, patients:

o can change to another federally licensed seller more easily because they can transfer their medical document;

o no longer have personal storage limits or the 30-day limitation period for the purchase of cannabis from a federally licensed seller; and

o have access to a broader range of products.

• Improvements were also made to reduce the risk of abuse of the cannabis for medical purposes program. Under the Cannabis Regulations, Health Canada has the power to refuse or revoke a registration for an individual to produce their own cannabis for medical purposes in order to protect public health or public safety.

IF PRESSED ON SUPPLY ISSUES FOR PATIENTS

• Health Canada closely monitors production and inventory levels and the availability of cannabis for medical purposes.

• Health Canada expects that holders of a licence for sales for medical purposes will take reasonable steps to ensure that registered patients continue to have access to the products they need for medical purposes.

• A number of licensed sellers have committed publicly to prioritize registered patients over other sales.‎

• It is expected that any localized and product-specific shortages will become far fewer in number as the overall supply chain grows and gains experience.

IF PRESSED ON LIMITED NUMBER OF AUTHORIZED HEALTH PRODUCTS CONTAINING CANNABIS

• With the coming into force of the Cannabis Act, Health Canada clarified the rules for prescription health products containing cannabis that make authorized health claims.

• By adding phytocannabinoids to the Prescription Drug List, authorized health products containing cannabis, such as Sativex, remain subject to appropriate requirements of the Food and Drugs Act.

• This maintained the requirement for oversight by a health practitioner for health products containing cannabis and helped ensure that these products are used appropriately, just like any other prescription medication.

• In addition, Health Canada recently completed a public consultation on health products containing cannabis. The department is committed to seeking external expert advice on the appropriate level of scientific evidence needed to determine whether these products could be used safely without a doctor’s oversight.

IF PRESSED ON COMPLAINTS REGARDING PERSONAL PRODUCTION WITH A HEALTH CANADA AUTHORIZATION

• Although the Government cannot comment on specific cases, all persons authorized to produce a limited amount of cannabis for medical purposes must abide by the law and operate within the limits set out when they were registered at all times.

• It is illegal for these individuals to provide or sell cannabis to anyone else.

• In addition, under the Cannabis Regulations, Health Canada has the power to refuse to register or revoke a registration to protect public health or public safety, including preventing cannabis from being diverted to the illicit market.

• Health Canada will not hesitate to take action if non-compliance with the regulations is identified.

• Health Canada also encourages all provinces, territories and municipalities to use the tools at their disposal to ensure that individuals meet all applicable standards and bylaws, including local by-laws about zoning, noise, odour, and fire safety.

IF PRESSED ON PERSONAL REGISTRATION CERTIFICATES GRANTED TO INDIVIDUALS SUBJECT TO CRIMINAL INVESTIGATIONS

• Our Government remains committed to ensuring patients have access to cannabis for medical purposes, while providing safeguards to reduce the risk of abuse of the system.

• Successive court decisions have established the right of individuals to have reasonable access to cannabis for medical purposes.

• The information submitted in an application to produce cannabis for medical purposes is rigorously reviewed by Health Canada and the registration is refused if it does not meet the requirements, or contains information that is false or misleading.

• Investigations and/or charges are not enough to deny medical cannabis to patients who have the support of their health care practitioner to use cannabis for their medical needs. Should a conviction occur, Health Canada would review the information to determine if enforcement actions were warranted, including possible revocation of the registration.

IF PRESSED ON THE CANADIAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION’S POSITION THAT THE MEDICAL SYSTEM SHOULD BE ABOLISHED

• Successive court decisions have established the right of individuals to have reasonable access to cannabis for medical purposes.

• Determining whether cannabis is appropriate to treat an individual’s symptoms is a decision best made through a discussion with a health care practitioner.

• Health Canada has published an updated summary of the peer-reviewed scientific and medical literature on the effects, risks and harms of cannabis for medical and non-medical purposes.

• This information can help Canadians and their health care practitioners make informed decisions about the benefits and risks of using cannabis for medical purposes.

• Our Government continues to actively monitor the medical access program and will evaluate the framework within 5 years of the coming into force of the Cannabis Act.

Medical Regime
• At the end of June 2019, there were 363,917 medical client registrations with federally licensed sellers (Note: these are not always unique individuals as individuals may be registered with more than one licensed producer provided an original medical document was used with each registration).
• As of June 2019, 28,869 individuals were registered with Health Canada for personal and designated cultivation of cannabis for their own medical purposes.
• Between April 1 and June 30, 2019, 5,361 kilograms of dried cannabis and 15,134 litres of cannabis oil were sold for medical purposes.
• Medical client registrations and sales of cannabis for medical purposes have remained relatively stable since October 2018.

Authorizations for personal or designated production
• Canadians who have been authorized by their health care practitioner can access cannabis for medical purposes by producing a limited amount of cannabis or by designating someone to produce it for them.
• Personal and designated production are subject to strict regulatory requirements, which are designed to ensure that cannabis is consumed only with the approval and under the supervision of an authorized health care practitioner.
• Health Canada reviews all applications for personal or designated production to ensure that the regulatory requirements are met. Health Canada also confirms that the health care practitioner is authorized by—and in good standing with—the relevant provincial or territorial regulatory health authority, and that the medical document is an original that has not been altered or falsified.
• Once a registration certificate is issued, the personal or designated producer may not produce in excess of the maximum limits outlined in a registration certificate, and may not sell cannabis to any person. Selling cannabis without authorization is a criminal offence. A maximum of four registrations are permitted per production site. Only the individuals authorized to produce a limited quantity of cannabis for their own medical purposes, or the person designated to produce it for them, can tend to the plants.
• Health Canada appreciates that, as in any regulatory framework, there will be instances where individuals choose to operate outside of the law. Health Canada supports law enforcement representatives on a daily basis by providing a dedicated service 24 hours a day and seven days a week to confirm, when necessary, that specific individuals are authorized to produce a limited amount of cannabis for medical purposes.
• Health Canada has the ability to inspect a production sites if it is not the registrant’s home to ensure it is abiding by the terms set out in the individual’s registration certificate.

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