Pubdate: Mon, 23 Mar 2015
Source: Toronto Star (CN ON)
Copyright: 2015 The Toronto Star
Contact:  http://www.thestar.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/456
Author: Murray Brewster
Page: A1

MEDICAL MARIJUANA COSTS SOAR FOR VETS

Feds spent $4.3 million on pot prescriptions for ex-soldiers last
year

OTTAWA- The cost of providing medical marijuana to the country's
injured soldiers under a Veterans Affairs program jumped to more than
$4.3 million this fiscal year, an increase of 10 times what was spent
last year.

And the number of ex-soldiers eligible for taxpayer-funded, prescribed
pot more than quadrupled to 601 patients, according to figures
released by the department.

The numbers represent a dramatic escalation, even from last fall, when
former veterans minister Julian Fantino was told in a briefing note
that there were 224 approved cases.

At the beginning of the last budget year there were 116 eligible
veterans.

In 2013-14, the government spent $417,000 on medical marijuana for
soldiers, said the briefing obtained by The Canadian Press under
access to information legislation.

The jaw-dropping increases may represent a conundrum for Health
Canada, which routinely warns against marijuana use, and the ruling
Conservatives who have ridiculed Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau's
campaign for overall legalization of marijuana.

In a statement, a Veterans Affairs spokeswoman stood by the program,
pointing to government documents explaining that even though the
government does not want to see marijuana used as medicine, the courts
have ordered patients to have access to it if prescribed. "Marijuana
for medical purposes is not an approved drug or medicine in Canada and
Health Canada does not endorse or promote the use of marijuana," said
Janice Summerby in an email. "However, (Veterans Affairs) will support
eligible veterans by reimbursing the cost of marijuana for medical
purposes if their physician deems it is an appropriate treatment for
the veteran's health condition and authorizes its use in accordance
with Health Canada's regulations."

Throughout much of last year, there was a growing debate within the
veterans department about how much would be covered by the program,
introduced in 2008, and whether it should be capped or even cancelled
outright.

Fantino, who has since been replaced by Erin O'Toole as minister, was
presented with four different options, including dropping the policy,
but retaining existing clients; or eliminating it altogether.

In a pamphlet sent to constituents last year, Fantino claimed Trudeau
wants to "make buying marijuana a normal, everyday activity for young
Canadians" and even charged that the Liberal leader wants to allow the
sale of pot in corner stores.

Health Canada - which oversees the country's burgeoning medical
marijuana industry - is running ads saying: "The science is clear.
Marijuana use equals health risks."

Clayton Goodwin, a former reservist who was injured in the Far North
in 2004, said the mixed messages make it hard to get pot prescribed by
a doctor, even though medical marijuana has been legal since 2001.

"The personal stigma and shaming of an individual's choice of medicine 
is something that needs to be addressed," said Goodwin, who noted that a 
group run by an ex-combat engineer in New Brunswick - Veterans Helping 
Veterans: Marijuana for Trauma Inc. - is helping pair veterans with 
doctors who will prescribe marijuana.

He said many veterans with chronic pain, anxiety and post-traumatic
stress are choosing medicinal pot over pharmaceuticals for safety and
to get away from some of the side effects of prescription drugs.

Goodwin agreed that the price of anywhere between $9 and $15 per gram
was too high, but blamed the government.

"Right now, normal Canadians, never mind veterans, do not have enough
access from the licensed producers from the program that's been put in
place to supply us our medication because (the government) hasn't
licensed enough of them and they are taking on too many consumers,"
Goodwin said.

Cancelling or capping the program, especially in an election year,
could further anger an already incensed veterans community.

The debate at Veteran Affairs started in earnest last spring after
Health Canada introduced regulatory changes that limited its role to
overseeing the rules and licensing of private producers.

"There are no longer any health criteria to be met and fewer controls
over who can prescribe," said the Oct. 20, 2014 briefing note to
Fantino. "New regulations do not speak to quantity limits or pricing
of marijuana."

Before the change, Health Canada provided eligible veterans with
marijuana at a fixed price of $5 per gram, but private growers can now
charge what the market will stand.

Health Canada guidelines suggest individuals should limit their
consumption to five grams per day, while the College of Family
Physicians of Canada suggests three grams.

Right now, eligible veterans can receive up to 10 grams of pot per
day. Requests for higher amounts are reviewed on an individual basis
by department bureaucrats as long as a doctor provides a written rationale.
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MAP posted-by: Matt