Manx medicinal cannabis trial to continue while long-term policy set

A policy is being drawn up on licensing the dispensation of medicinal cannabis

The trial of a medicinal cannabis dispensation service on the Isle of Man will continue while a long-term policy is set, the health minister has said.

Karsons pharmacy in Onchan was given the island's first licence to dispense private prescriptions under a year-long pilot scheme in December.

Lawrie Hooper said the service would continue while his department drew up a policy on how the drug is licensed.

This would be focused on accessibility and cost for patients, he said.

About 1,700 medicinal cannabis prescriptions have been dispensed by Karsons to 380 patients since the trial began.

The pharmacy was granted a licence to import and dispense the drug in a trial by the Department of Health and Social Care.

Patient accessibility

Mr Hooper told Tynwald members his department was working on a long-term policy on how the dispensation and importation of medicinal cannabis would be licensed in future.

It would review issues such as extending the number of licences issued, and the "appropriateness" of whether private clinics that provided prescriptions needed to be Care Quality Commission registered.

But patient accessibility, safety and affordability would be "at the forefront" of the decision-making after being identified as "areas of concern", Mr Hooper said.

The pilot at Karsons would not "come to an abrupt end" and would continue until a longer-term decision was made in the new year, he added.

Why not follow BBC Isle of Man on Facebook and X? You can also send story ideas to [e-mail]