Althea’s cannabis-based oil has been given the green light from Ireland’s regulators to be prescribed free of charge through the Medical Cannabis Access Programme (MCAP).
The global manufacturer of cannabis-based medicines has successfully secured approval from The Republic of Ireland’s Primary Care Reimbursement Service for its product to be prescribed to patients on the MCAP.
Althea CBD12:THC10 will now be available free of charge for patients under the reimbursement scheme, having been approved for prescription in spasticity related to multiple sclerosis (MS) and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV).
To date fewer than 10 products that have been approved by regulators for prescription under the MCAP.
The programme was introduced in 2019 under the former Minister for Health Simon Harris, to enable patients to more easily access medicinal cannabis, but it was not fully operational until 2021 when it enrolled its first patient.
Currently only patients living with one of the three qualifying conditions, CINV, treatment-resistant epilepsy, and spasticity associated with MS, are able to access cannabis medicines through the scheme. It has received criticism from some for its ‘restrictive’ nature, with fewer than 100 people thought to be enrolled on the scheme so far and only limited products available.
Althea’s medical affairs team worked closely with the Irish regulator over the last 12 months to secure the approval, with the aim of increasing the options available for patients and their clinicians.
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Althea secures approval of cannabis-based oil through Ireland’s MCAP
