Think Clearly about the Medical Marijuana Policy in Thailand

Abstract

On 18 February 2019, for the first time in their history Thailand enacted a law governing medical marijuana use. Various related stakeholders are subsequently forced to think clearly in order to design and implement health and social systems so as to get the most benefits and to protect potential negative consequences caused by this policy. This article is a literature review and synthesis of important provoca­tive ideas for societal discourses. The current trends indicated that the use of cannabis for strictly medical reasons has both pros and cons. There are also equal for and against views expressed by the people to­wards the medical marijuana policy. Hence, it is necessary and important to create a mutual understanding within Thai society. While there are some components of cannabis that can be used to treat patients with some chronic symptoms or diseases, the fact that it can result in possible addiction cannot be ignored. Care should be taken when using cannabis for medical purposes and it should not be abused. Thailand has to apply both medical and public health perspectives in dealing with the medical cannabis policy aim­ing to provide benefits to relevant patients and to prevent negative consequences that can affect society in general. In addition, the general and traditional medical systems should work together in harmony to ensure that patients get the most benefit from medical cannabis. Furthermore, Thailand should not apply the economic cannabis model since there are no adequate control systems in place yet and that fact may create some serious negative irreversible consequences to Thai society. Finally and most importantly, Thailand should seriously and sufficiently invest in research on medical cannabis treatment for Thais and surveillance systems to evaluate both positive and negative impacts of this new policy in an effort to aim for what is best for Thai society.