Six years of the Medicinal Cannabis Scheme in New Zealand: Challenges ahead

About this webinar: New Zealand legalised access to prescribed cannabis-based products for therapeutic use in 2020. In the same year, the public narrowly voted against the legalisation of recreational cannabis in a landmark referendum. Six years on, access to cannabis-based products has improved dramatically, with over 380,000 medicinal cannabis products prescribed and supplied last year. However, the growing privatisation of cannabis prescribing through specialised clinics, the increasing supply of THC-dominant products, and the ongoing use of alternative supply sources are raising important questions about the scheme implementation and impacts. The webinar summarises the issues and ongoing challenges and discusses some possible fixes drawing on the NZ Drug Trends Survey data and administrative sources. About the speaker: Marta Rychert (PhD) is an Associate Professor at College of Health, Massey University, New Zealand. Her research focuses on drug markets, drug policy, cannabis commercialisation and health practitioners’ regulation. She leads a research programme on the implementation of medicinal cannabis reform in New Zealand. Her recent research analysed the governance of international cannabis policy changes in less-commercial cannabis reform models, including in Quebec, Uruguay and Jamaica. Prior to her academic appointments she worked for the European Union Drug Agency. She is a Rutherford Discovery Fellow of the Royal Society Te Apārangi and Co-Editor-in-Chief of Drugs, Habits and Social Policy.