The sale of medicinal cannabis in Australia has been given the go-ahead following an announcement by federal Health Minister Greg Hunt, with changes made to increase local supplies.
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The minister gave a conservative estimate that the drug could be available within eight weeks, with the government set to facilitate an import process for an interim supply.
The announcement comes almost one year to the day since the federal government passed The Narcotic Drugs Ammendment Bill.
However, with no Australian suppliers, patients were forced to seek legal supplies from overseas, with wait times of up to a year and and half due to strict regulations.
Earlier today, Mr Hunt told the ABC the announcement would provide sufficient supplies for "all of the medical demand".
"Last year, the law was put in place which made medicinal cannabis available. Now however I want to ... deal immediately with the question of supply,” he said.
More to come.