26/11/2024
Prague Morning
Patients suffering from chronic pain in the Czech Republic will soon have greater access to medicinal cannabis, following a new decree from the Ministry of Health.
Starting April 1, 2025, general practitioners will be authorized to prescribe cannabis for pain relief, a significant step toward meeting patient demand and reducing dependency on traditional analgesics and opiates.
The decision comes after years of lobbying by patients and medical professionals.
Ministry spokesperson Ondřej Jakob confirmed to Novinky and Právo that the new rules are designed to simplify access.
“The decree allows GPs to prescribe medicinal cannabis for chronic, intractable pain,” Jakob said, highlighting efforts to accommodate reasonable proposals during the drafting process.
Petr Šonka, Chairman of the Association of GPs of the Czech Republic, has welcomed the change. “If GPs can prescribe opiates such as morphine, it is logical they should also be allowed to prescribe medicinal cannabis,” he explained.
Šonka emphasized that cannabis could be especially valuable for terminal cancer patients experiencing severe pain.
