The number of medicinal cannabis prescriptions more than doubled over the last two years. Illustration / Andrew Louis
The number of medicinal cannabis prescriptions more than doubled over the last two years. Illustration / Andrew Louis
Tens of thousands of Kiwis receive medicinal cannabis prescriptions each year - for ailments as diverse as insomnia, epilepsy and chronic pain.
Detailed government data released exclusively to the Herald breaks it down by age group, gender, ethnicity and region.
Prescriptions for men tripled between 2022 and 2023 - but only doubled for women.
New Government data obtained exclusively by the Herald shows more Kiwis than ever are using medicinal cannabis - especially in older age groups.
Men take more than women, and it’s more prevalent in the North.
The data shows 30 to 39-year-olds received more prescriptions than any other age group lastyear - with 27,028 scripts.
Those aged 40 to 49 were the second highest users by age group with 21,407 scripts, followed by 50 to 59-year-olds (17,904) and 60 to 69-year-olds (13,236).
Twenty to 29-year-olds were prescribed medicinal cannabis in only 12,713 cases.
People aged over 70 have been prescribed far more cannabis (14,542) than people under 20 (1255).
In 2023, 3873 cannabis prescriptions were given to those of Asian descent, 14,333 were made out for Māori people, 1716 to Pacifika peoples and 87,576 to people who fall in the “other” category, which includes European, Middle Eastern, Latin American and African people.
Since the Medicinal Cannabis Scheme began in 2020, the full-year figures have more than tripled, from 9401 people being prescribed cannabis in 2021 to 17,416 the following year and 35,359 in 2023.
As for the prescriptions themselves, just over 108,000 were issued last year, a 130% increase from the 46,867 the year before and a more than four-fold increase from the 22,506 in 2021.
While prescriptions for men nearly tripled from 2022 to 2023 - from 22,863 to 60,232 - for women prescriptions only doubled, rising from 23,952 to 47,633.
Out of the four New Zealand health regions, the Northern Region has hit medicinal cannabis the hardest, followed by Te Waipounamu (South Island), then Central Region. Te Manawa Taki (Midland Region) received the lowest number of prescriptions of all the regions.
Nic Scott, a 41-year-old marketing manager with PTSD and anxiety, said he received his first prescription from the Cannabis Clinic about 18 months ago.
He had been suffering from panic attacks and feeling out of control with anxiety, which he described as “crippling”.
“I can be a chronic overthinker, and my therapist will say that I catastrophise,” he told the Herald.
Legal medicinal cannabis became available when the Misuse of Drugs (Medicinal Cannabis) Regulations 2019 came into force.
Other conditions doctors may prescribe cannabis for include chronic pain, nausea and vomiting due to chemotherapy, muscle spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, glaucoma and palliative care.
Scott says the medicinal cannabis has made his symptoms manageable.
He also said the quality of regulated medicinal cannabis was much better than illegal alternatives - which he had previously used - meaning he can use less, and it lasts longer.
“It takes the stigma away, and you are just using a product that is serving a purpose that makes your life better,” he said.
Scott said the medication is part of a wider health plan he has worked on with a therapist to help him relax, sleep and function better.
Auckland marketing manager Nic Scott uses prescribed medicinal cannabis. Photo / Supplied
A spokesperson for Te Whatu Ora Health New Zealand said: “We don’t have information as to whether the individuals now accessing medicinal cannabis legally were previously accessing cannabis illegally. The increase may mean that people are accessing safer cannabis products”.
Dr Marta Rychert from Massey University’s SHORE Centre drug research team told the Herald as doctors and the public become more familiar with the medication, prescription numbers are expected to rise.
She said there are many new speciality clinics springing up specifically to prescribe the drug, and the numbers of cannabis products is also increasing - including varieties of dry flower, herbal teas, cannabis sprays, lozenges, CBD oils and combination THC and CBD oils.
Rychert told the Herald that some people on medicinal cannabis will have switched from black-market cannabis, while others will be coming to the drug completely fresh.
She also said some people access a prescription just once, to feel like they have a legal defence if they are caught with illegal cannabis.
Dr Marta Rychert, senior SHORE researcher. Photo / Supplied
Global research has found medicinal cannabis users are generally older than recreational users, Rychert said, as younger people may not have the money to go to the doctor and get a prescription.
A medicinal cannabis pricing guide seen by the Herald shows one brand of cannabidiol (CBD) isolate costs $435 for 40mL, another brand charged $73 for 30mL, dried flower from one brand was priced at $130 for 10g and $100 for another of the same quantity.
For combined CBD and Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), one brand charged $149 for 40mL another charged $136 for 50mL.
Rychert said a SHORE research survey found three defined groups that were less likely to access prescription cannabis: those on low incomes, those who grow their own cannabis, and people who identify as Māori.
Auckland mother and patient advocate Katy Thomas said while cannabidiol (CBD) has meant her 10-year-old Eddy, who has drug-resistant generalised nocturnal tonic colonic seizure disorder, has had the best seizure control of his life, it is prohibitively expensive for many.
Thomas, who is also Medical Cannabis Aotearoa New Zealand’s spokeswoman, told the Herald the data shows there is a “yawning chasm” between the “haves and the have-nots” when it comes to accessing medicinal cannabis.
Medicinal cannabis advocate Katy Thomas and her sons Eddy and Harry. Photo / Supplied
“Specialist clinics are really filling the gap to meet patient need. However, the problem with going private will always be cost.”
That means people with disabilities and in poverty, who may have the highest need, can’t explore the therapy, she said.
Katie Harris is an Auckland-based journalist who covers social issues, including sexual assault, workplace misconduct, crime and justice. She joined the Herald in 2020.
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