Australia's Medical Marijuana Subterfuge

Abstract

It is a little known fact that medical cannabis has been legally available on prescription from General Practitioners for more than 18 years in Australia. The curious media calls to ‘legalise’ an already legal medication has generated the illusion that medical cannabis has always been as illegal as its recreational use, and that State and Federal Governments really do need to make the legality of medical cannabis a reality. So why has the Australian media almost uniformly been keeping the Australian public in the dark about the already legal status of medical cannabis, and why has it campaigned so strongly and deceptively about something we have long had, albeit rarely used? This discussion informs educators and potentially their students, particularly in areas within current personal development and health curricula.