Importation loophole an affordable legal avenue

Tonight on Story it was shown to New Zealand that is possible for New Zealanders to legally procure ounces of Raw Cannabis and import them legally into New Zealand.

MCANZ as a charity, is solely focused in legally accessing Cannabis based products, so in addition to supporting Patients fundraise for Sativex MCANZ has been making submissions on behalf of patients for alternative products, the first of which we expect to come to fruition in the next few weeks. MCANZ is excited at the prospect of this as a legal option, which may prove far more cost effective than the approved Cannabis based products available, or likely to become available in the immediate future.

“It is significant in the context of Epidiolex, which New Zealand Children have missed the boat on while 40 Australian children have been given compassionate access. When this drug is finally made available here it will be outrageously expensive, the estimates for its cost per month are $2500-5000 US dollars per month, in those cases, it will be much cheaper for a parent and child to fly to Honolulu for a weekend, and pick up a high CBD product such as Haleighs Hope or Charlotte’s Web, than to be held to ransom by a lack of choice here in New Zealand,” says MCANZ coordinator Shane Le Brun.

“The ability to bring in ounces of Raw Cannabis flower makes a mockery of the Government's stance denying raw cannabis as a medicine, despite the Netherlands making granulated raw cannabis to strict conditions that could be considered pharmaceutical grade (Bedrocan), and the New South Wales Government also seeking this very same product for trials,” says Le Brun.

“The Government's position will also become untenable as Australia progresses, if there Is a significant delay between product availability between Australia and New Zealand, droves of New Zealanders will likely exploit this loophole to obtain cannabis-based products in advance of any planned exports and approvals required in New Zealand," says MCANZ coordinator Shane Le Brun.

In Hawaii, the maximum permissible limit for possession is 4 ounces, or just over 100 grams, which is effectively what the maximum consumption rate is for medical use in NZ, where patients with an extreme pain disorder, Complex Regional Pain syndrome, can consume an ounce per week, so the 4 ounce limit aligns perfectly with our importation limit of 1 month's supply.

To put it into perspective against the limitations of Sativex, Sativex has 5.2mg of cannabinoids per spray, 100 sprays optimistically per bottle, for 520mg of cannabinoids, at 10% average yield that is 5-6 grams of raw cannabis per bottle, and a triple pack of Sativex costs $1200 NZ Dollars approximately, for 18 grams of raw cannabis equivalent. Benchmark that against the ability to import just over 100 grams of raw cannabis at a much cheaper cost from Hawaii, and the inability of customs officials to override a medical decision made overseas means that many people with illnesses that benefit from cannabis may take up the option, even when only “passing through” and not traveling for the sole purpose of obtaining Medical Cannabis.

New Zealand, as a country of over 4 million people, has somewhere between 30-40 active prescriptions for Sativex, and 1 for a failed trial of Aceso, a high CBD spray. That is less than 1 per 100k people accessing Medical Cannabis legally, that is the metric against which any opening up of access will be assessed by MCANZ. MCANZ anticipates as many people as on Sativex, will exploit this law in the coming year.

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