State board recommends medical marijuana for anxiety, Tourette syndrome

Pennsylvanians with anxiety and Tourette syndrome could soon be eligible for medical marijuana.

The state Medical Marijuana Advisory Board voted Friday to recommenced adding both conditions to the list of health problems that can qualify patients for the program, according to the state Department of Health.

They would be the first new conditions since the original 21 that were approved in 2016.

State Secretary of Health Rachel Levine will need to approve the changes before they take effect.

Levine will review medical research about marijuana’s effectiveness in treating anxiety and Tourette syndrome before making her decision, according to the DOH.

In a separate vote, the board recommended marijuana edibles — food and drink products laced with marijuana — be approved for sale at dispensaries.

These edibles would require “robust labeling and warnings in order to deter accidental use by children,” DOH spokesman Nate Wardle said via email.

This may not happen for a while, as allowing edibles would require a vote by the state legislature.

The state has taken several steps to broaden access to medical marijuana program since the program’s 2018 launch.

In April, the state approved the sale of dry leaf marijuana.

In December, the Medical Marijuana Advisory Board announced it would accept petitions to consider new qualifying medical conditions.

Anxiety and Depression were among the first petitions to be discussed.

The board rejected six others, including insomnia, irritable bowel syndrome and Addison’s disease, the Allentown Morning Call reported.

These petitions were rejected because of a lack of of specificity in the applications, or a lack of evidence of marijuana’s effectiveness in treating the conditions, according to the Morning Call.

These conditions could be reconsidered later.

More than 100,000 people have signed up for the state’s medical marijuana program.

Jacob Tierney is a Tribune-Review staff writer. You can contact Jacob at 724-836-6646, jtierney@tribweb.com or via Twitter @Soolseem.