The Mexican Supreme Court ordered the government to come up with rules surrounding the use of medical Mexican Supreme CourtWednesday after granting a child permission to use a drug derived from cannabis to treat epilepsy.
The Ministry of Health has 180 business days to establish regulations around the therapeutic use of cannabis and its derivatives, the country’s top court said in a statement.
Mexico’s Congress approved the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes in 2017 after a two-year fight, and President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who took office late last year, has said he would consider legalizing certain drugs.
His government, however, revoked a decision that authorized the sale of 38 cannabis-derived products, such as dietary supplements, drinks, and cosmetics, to be sold in pharmacies.
The court said the agency should have issued the rules within 180 days after the original decree legalizing medical marijuana came into effect in June 2017, and since they hadn’t, the child had been forced to seek permission from authorities to use cannabis oil.
“With the absence of norms to regulate the use of therapeutic use of cannabis, it is impossible for the claimant to access treatment related to this substance,” the court said.
The Ministry of Health responded in a statement, saying it would “fully comply” with the ruling and added it would ensure the child’s treatment.
The Mexican government began a fight against drugs in 2006 that unleashed a wave of violence that has left more than a quarter of a million people killed and 40,000 people missing, according to official data.
AFP
