Germany: Majority supports medical use of cannabis
There is widespread support among the German population for the use of natural cannabis products in the medical treatment of the severely ill. A large majority also favours that the costs of treatment with dronabinol, the active component of cannabis, are covered by health insurances.
- www.cannabis-med.org/english/
This is the result of a study by the Institute for Opinion Polls Allensbach, which was conducted in June. The highest support was found among the better educated and among supporters of smaller parties, i.e. of the Liberals (FDP, Free Democratic Party), the Greens and the Socialists (Left Party). But also among the respondents who completed secondary school and among devotees of the Christian Democratic Party (CDU/CSU) this proportion was above 70 per cent.
According to the results 77 per cent of Germans support allowing a treatment of the severely ill with natural cannabis products, such as marijuana or hashish, provided that a physician recommends the treatment but health insurance declines to pay for a dronabinol treatment. Only 11 per cent of those polled are against this. Also 77 per cent of the Germans support that health insurance cover the cost for a treatment with dronabinol, if there is reasonable evidence for the efficacy of the drug. 7 per cent were against it.
In the representative survey 1438 citizens, aged 16 years or older, were interviewed in person about their knowledge and opinion on the medical use of cannabis products. 69 per cent of the respondents were already aware of the use of cannabis or synthetically manufactured products with the same active agent for medical purposes, while 31 per cent learnt about it for the first time during the interview.
According to the German Association for Cannabis as Medicine (ACM), Neunkirchen-Seelscheid, who commissioned the study this was the first representative survey on this subject in a EU country. Dr. Franjo Grotenhermen, chairman of the ACM, was very pleased but not too surprised with the results. "In similar surveys in the USA there was a support of between 60 and 70 per cent, in Canada of about 90 per cent," Grotenhermen said. "People are able to differentiate between the medical and recreational uses of cannabis products. Given the unsatisfactory legal situation I wish that the responsible politicians would become pensive. Medical cannabis users should no longer be forced into illegality."
The study of the Institute for Opinion Polls Allensbach on cannabis in medicine is available for download as a pdf file at: www.cannabis-med.org/german/allensbach.pdf
International Association for Cannabis as Medicine (IACM)
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53819 Neunkirchen
Germany
Tel: +49-2247-968083
Fax: +49-2247-9159223
e-mail: info at cannabis-med.org
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