Although Connecticut’s medical marijuana industry just formally got started less than two months ago, MMJ advocates are already petitioning the state to expand the list of ailments that qualify patients for cannabis.
According to the Yale Daily News, a group of patients and advocates at a recent hearing with the Connecticut Medical Marijuana Program Board of Physicians asked that four specific conditions be added to the current list: sickle cell disease, psoriatic arthritis, Tourette Syndrome and Post-Laminectomy Syndrome.
The current list of qualifying ailments for MMJ in Connecticut includes cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, epilepsy, and seven other conditions.
The board didn’t make any decision on the petition presented by the group but plans to revisit the issue at its January meeting. Even if the board members agree to support adding the four conditions, they’d still have to submit a letter of recommendation to the commissioner of Connecticut’s consumer protection agency, and the state Legislature will have the final say.
