The Ministry of Health prohibits the use of medical cannabis in case of PTSD: what are the reasons

On September 27, the Ministry of Health published a list of diseases and conditions that can be treated with medical cannabis. The list is significantly shorter than in many other countries and does not include PTSD. The Ministry of Health requires a clinical trial, which is not conducted for medical marijuana.

This was sated by Hennadiy Shabas, head of the Ukrainian Medical Cannabis Association, on Hromadske Radio.

«Unfortunately, the approved list is very short—much shorter than in countries that have long regulated access to medical cannabis. The list does not include PTSD, which is probably the most necessary treatment for our country right now. As far as we know, the military is already using medical cannabis to treat stress disorders, sleep disorders, and shell shock. However, none of this is on the list,» – he said.

According to Gennadiy Shabas, the association sent a question to the minister regarding this oversight and received a response stating that the ministry was not ready for such “radical actions.” The approved list of diseases for which medical cannabis can be used is much narrower than that proposed by the Ukrainian Medical Cannabis Association.

«This is an order from the Ministry of Health. They followed the established path of evidence-based medicine. We explain that it is a herbal medicine that does not need to undergo all this scrutiny and has no side effects. The Ministry requires us to present clinical trials from other countries, and then they will consider including this item,» – Shabas explained.

Usage of cannabis abroad

According to Shabas, Israel, which is actively engaged in hostilities, has been using medical cannabis to treat PTSD for more than 20 years. Additionally, since the early 2000s, Canada has also used it for this purpose, reporting successful results.

Nevertheless, the Ministry of Health of Ukraine considers the experiences of other countries to be insufficient evidence.

«The only agreement we reached is that we will adopt the protocols for the treatment of PTSD from Israel and validate them. We will work through all these points with our military and announce the results. I hope that afterward, the Ministry of Health will include PTSD in the list. Ordinary people and organizations can send letters to the ministry’s email address requesting such action. The more appeals there are, the faster they will make the necessary decisions,» – he said.

Some military personnel use medical cannabis illegally. Furthermore, it is provided to wounded soldiers who are being treated, for instance, in Germany, where this drug is legal.

As the head of the association explains, the Verkhovna Rada passed a law requiring all the necessary bylaws on medical cannabis to be approved within six months. To date, only a third to half of this list has been approved. As a result, no active pharmaceutical ingredient has been registered for use in the manufacture of medicines. There is also no tracking system in place, although a test version already exists.

As a reminder, medical cannabis became legal in Ukraine on August 16. Medicines containing it will be able to be manufactured in pharmacies.