Exclusive: "There is no way to escape it anymore," says congressman author of bill that authorizes cannabis-based medicines in Brazil
By Marcus Bruno
Federal Congressman Fábio Mitidieri (PSD-SE) is the author of a project that changes the "Drug Law" of 2006 to, according to the text, "enable the commercialization of medicines containing extracts, substrates, or parts of the Cannabis sativa plant in their formulation." Last Thursday (13), the President of the Chamber, Rodrigo Maia (DEM-RJ), created a special commission that will have 34 members and the same number of alternates to issue an opinion on this bill (399/15).
In an exclusive interview with the portal Sechat, Mitidieri revealed that the project, presented in 2015, was blocked by the then president of the House, Eduardo Cunha, for being against the agenda. But now "there is no way to escape the topic," as it "affects so many people." The politician also has faith that the bill will be approved this year, but believes it will happen by the end of 2020.
According to the text, "medications containing extracts, substrates, or parts of the plant known as Cannabis sativa, or cannabinoid substances, may be marketed in the national territory, provided there is proof of their therapeutic efficacy, duly certified by a medical report for all cases of indication for their use."
Read the main excerpts from the interview.
Why are you proposing this law, a topic so controversial in Brazil?
It is a reality proven by several studies, due to the need for therapeutic use of cannabis extracts to relieve pain, especially for people undergoing cancer treatment. This has already been adopted in several countries, and I believe Brazil must face this topic, which is why I presented the project.
Now that the President of the Chamber has created this commission to give its opinion, what are the next steps?
From now on, we need to present the members who will be part of this special commission. Then a president and a rapporteur will be chosen. From there, the commission will be able to conduct a thorough analysis of the topic, of the project itself. There are some projects that will probably be attached, but our idea is to release the therapeutic use of cannabis extract, as there is already specific proof that it alleviates (pain) and brings benefits to people who are undergoing treatment for cancer.
This bill was presented in 2015. Why did it take more than four years to reach this stage?
At the time, Congressman Eduardo Cunha, who was the president, was against this initiative and did not forward it to any committee. It was stalled on the president's desk. Now, with Rodrigo Maia, it has moved forward. There is no way to escape this topic. It keeps coming up. And then the president decided to (create) this commission to debate and delve deeper into the issue, as it affects so many people, right? And it is of interest to so many people. I think President Rodrigo Maia deserves congratulations for facing the topic.
How long do you believe it will take for this project to be in the president's hands for sanction?
Everything will depend on the progress of the commission. If everything goes well, in the second semester, managing to leave the commission and come to the floor, and being approved, it will go to the Senate. Then it will depend on the time it takes in the Senate. The truth is that. And if there are changes, it has to return to the Chamber. But we hope it can proceed as quickly as possible, because the project has a very high demand. There are people who need this treatment. In other countries, like the USA, it has been legalized for many years. We hope Brazil will go in the same direction. God willing, it will be this year, but more likely next year.
Anvisa opened public consultations on cannabis cultivation in Brazil with a series of requirements that displeased associations and companies. What would be your ideal planting model?
The first understanding is the release, then we will go to regulation. And Anvisa will have to participate, yes. We will listen to all segments of the topic to understand what the best mechanism is. We need to broaden the debate in the commission, see how it is done in other countries. And then you will be able to have a better understanding to help Brazil move forward.
Photo: Cláudio Araújo/ PSD/Disclosure