13 senators sign panel report endorsing medical marijuana bill

Senate Bill No 2573 states that the use of cannabis for medical purposes will  be permitted “to treat or alleviate a qualified patient’s debilitating medical condition or symptoms.” (INQUIRER FILE PHOTO)

Updated on February 28, 2024, at 3:26 p.m.

MANILA, Philippines — A bill that seeks to legalize the medical use of cannabis or marijuana has reached the Senate floor.

Senate Bill No. 2573 was contained in Committee Report No. 210 signed by 13 senators.

The report, which was calendared for ordinary business on Tuesday, was jointly prepared and submitted by Senate committees on health and demography, public order and dangerous drugs, and finance.

Those who signed the panel report are Padilla, Senators Christopher “Bong” Go, Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, Sonny Angara, JV Ejercito, Jinggoy Estrada, Mark Villar, Lito Lapid, Raffy Tulfo, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., Grace Poe, Senate Minority Leader Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel Jr. and Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva.

Go, Villar, and Revilla, though, signed with reservations while Estrada, Pimentel, and Villanueva indicated that they would interpellate or make proper amendments when the bill is reported on the Senate floor.

“The state shall protect and promote the right to health of the people and instill health consciousness among them. Pursuant thereto, the state shall legalize and regulate the medical use of cannabis, which has been confirmed to have beneficial 9and therapeutic uses for known debilitating medical conditions,” the bill reads.

Under the proposal, the use of cannabis for medical purposes will  be permitted “to treat or alleviate a qualified patient’s debilitating medical condition or symptoms.”

“The medicalization of cannabis includes its acquisition, possession, transportation, delivery, dispensing, administration, cultivation, or manufacturing by private individuals or entities only for medical and research purposes,” the bill said.

A Philippine Medical Cannabis Authority or PMCA will be created under the Department of Health (DOH), which shall be the principal regulatory agency in the access and use of medical cannabis and the implementation of the measure.

Upon the recommendation of the DOH Secretary, the President will appoint a director to lead the PMCA as proposed in the measure.

Importation of medical cannabis “from countries with stringent regulatory agencies or countries with established medical cannabis regimes or countries already using the same medical cannabis products in the last five years, will be allowed under the bill.

It, however, prohibits the importation of medical cannabis products “from countries not using their own products.”

Other prohibited acts were also enumerated in the bill.

A qualified patient, for instance, is prohibited from doing the following:

• Use cannabis for purposes other than for treatment of a debilitating medical condition and outside of the designated treatment facilities
• Use of cannabis with other illegal intoxicating or dangerous substances
• Sell or give away medical cannabis

Meanwhile, any physician is prohibited from doing the following:

• Prescribe medical cannabis without an S2 license
• Prescribe medical cannabis to any person who is not a qualified patient under this Act
• Prescribe the use of medical cannabis for purposes other than for treatment of a debilitating medical condition
• Prescribe medical cannabis in quantities more than the needed dosage
• Fail or refuse to maintain the record of all his or her patients and prescriptions issued, referred to in Section 9 of this Act
• Issue a written prescription for his or her own use, or the use of his or her immediate family or relatives within the second civil degree of consanguinity or affinity

A counterpart measure was also approved by a joint panel in the House of Representatives early this month.

This proposal, however, was met with opposition from medical doctors and various sectors of society. They fear that this would open the “floodgates for the legalization of recreational marijuana.”

“We want to educate the public [about the dangers of marijuana]. We want to stop [our lawmakers from their proposed law to legalize medical marijuana]. Our lawmakers have a moral and legal responsibility to safeguard [the well-being of the public],” health advocate Dr. Tony Leachon was earlier quoted as saying.

Leachon warned the Philippines might end up like “the Colombia of Southeast Asia,” referring to the Latin American country known for being the world’s top producer of cocaine.

“We will be the ones exporting these (marijuana). It will lead to the tainting of the good image of our country,”  he said.