Medical Marijuana sales rise rapidly in Germany

Posted by Sagar Satapathy on September 19, 2016.

More and more medical marijuana have been sold in Germany. In the first half of 2015, around 33.8 kilograms of marijuana was sold to chronically ill patients for medical use. But that number has almost doubled as 61, 8 kilograms of marijuana is being sold in the first half of this year.

The Federal Ministry of Health has disclosed the facts of medical marijuana sales following a parliamentary letter of an inquiry request from the Left Party.

The Government said, it was unable to provide a reason for the rise of medical marijuana sale in the country. However, the rise of licenses being granted for legal use of marijuana has been cited as a link for the increase of the drug.

Around 233 kilograms of medicinal cannabis have been sold since 2011.

As of spring 2016, a total of 647 patients were given permission to purchase medicinal marijuana flowers and extract from pharmacies, while the previous year, 424 permits were issued for doctor-supervised use.

Although marijuana has been classified as an illegal drug in Germany, people with specific health conditions such as chronic pain, whom alternative remedies have not affected, have been allowed on a case-by-case basis to use the marijuana for self-therapy after the Federal Administrative Court’s ruling in 2005.

Meanwhile, Health Minister Hermann Gröhe proposed a law in May 2016 to formally legalize marijuana for all medicinal purposes, chronic or not. He also proposed to cover marijuana therapy through medical insurance.

Left Party marijuana advocates are also pushing the German parliament, known as the Bundestag, to approve the proposed marijuana law. The Left Party has accused the German ruling coalition of stalling the marijuana law. As many as 11 people had died in last few months due to delays in receiving medicinal marijuana, accused the Left Party.

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