Bill to legalize pot-derived pain relief spray introduced

By William L Spence

Lewiston Grandstand

BOISE — Idahoans with multiple sclerosis and other neurological disorders may soon have legal access to a marijuana-derived pain relief spray, under laws introduced this week.

House Bill 446 provides a spin-off in the Idaho Code for nabiximols, an oral spray undergoing clinical trials for possible US Food and Drug Administration approval.

The bill is co-sponsored by Rep. Fred Wood, R-Burley, and Sen. Fred Martin, R-Boise, chairs of the House and Senate Health and Welfare Committees.

“Anytime there’s something that the people of Idaho can benefit from medically, I want to support it,” Martin said. “I don’t support the legalization of marijuana, but I do support the appropriate use of ingredients found in marijuana that can be beneficial.”

Nabiximols is being developed by GW Pharmaceuticals, the same company that developed Epidiolex.

Epidiolex is a pharmaceutical grade cannabidiol, or CBD oil, used to treat certain forms of seizures. The product was approved in 2018 and remains the only FDA-approved drug containing active ingredients from the marijuana plant.

Nabiximols would be the second such drug. It contains a blend of CBD and THC, the psychoactive component in marijuana.

“It’s used to treat the spastic phase of multiple sclerosis,” Wood said. “(The manufacturer) expects to receive FDA approval sometime this summer.”

In states that have legalized marijuana, people can get nabiximol once it’s approved by the FDA and placed on the controlled substances list by the Drug Enforcement Agency.

However, in Idaho, THC and marijuana are both illegal. Even if the FDA and DEA approve Nabiximols this summer, people will have to wait for lawmakers to take action next year before it can be prescribed.

HB 446 potentially shortens this process by several months.

“I have no problem with that,” Wood said. “It’s still going to be a Scheduled drug, and probably Schedule II, which is as strict as you can get.”

The bill states that nabiximols are legal only in an FDA-approved drug.

“Once this law is passed, nabiximols will not become available for prescription until FDA approval and the Federal Drug Enforcement Administration designation as a controlled substance,” the purpose statement reads.

The bill was brought to the House Health and Welfare Committee by ballot and is now open to the committee for public hearing.

In recent years, the House of Representatives has generally been more receptive than the Senate to the idea that marijuana and/or its components have medicinal benefits.

A bill to legalize medical marijuana was introduced to the House Health and Welfare Committee last year but never got to a full hearing.

In contrast, the Senate approved a proposed constitutional amendment that would give the Legislature sole authority to legalize marijuana or other illegal drugs. This legislation later failed in the House.

source https://www.bisayanews.com/2022/01/22/bill-to-legalize-pot-derived-pain-relief-spray-introduced/