State's tightly controlled program has seen high costs and low enrollment. Pain patients might turn the tide. 

Minnesotans seeking pain relief have quickly become the second-largest group of patients in the state’s medical marijuana program, even though they became eligible just one month ago.

One out of three patients enrolled in the program is seeking relief from chronic pain, according to figures released this week by the Office of Medical Cannabis.

The Minnesota Department of Health added intractable pain to the shortlist of qualifying conditions for the program on Aug. 1. By Aug. 31, there were more pain patients — 847 — than patients with cancer, epilepsy and terminal illnesses combined.

Melissa Etheridge is diving headlong into the marijuana business. Her company, Etheridge Farms, will soon be making cannabis products available for California medical patients.

Medicinal cannabis will become legal, but strictly controlled from November this year, under a formal decision reached by the Therapeutic Goods Administration this week.

The final decision was published on Wednesday, paving the way for the drug to be legalised for medicinal use, as the federal government works towards creating a national regulator.

Clinical trials have shown moderate quality evidence the substance can help treat chronic pain and spasticity and potentially reduce chemotherapy-related nausea.

But it could still be some time before a fully functioning system was in place to ensure patients could access cannabis and cannabis-related drugs to ease their suffering.

You can still buy a gun if you're on the no-fly list in America, but if you smoke marijuana in a legal state, don't expect the same treatment: A federal appeals court recently upheld a ruling that bans gun sales for medical marijuana cardholders, which the court said doesn't violate the Second Amendment.

Given that 39.6% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer at some point in their lives, cancers affects nearly everyone. Chances are, someone close to you has battled cancer.

In all states that have legalized medical marijuana, there has been a 25% reduction in deaths related to the overdose of legally prescribed painkillers.

A woman observes inspects a cannabis plant with a magnifying glass.

There is still heated controversy in the United States about whether or not marijuana should be legalized for recreational use, let alone medicinal purposes. After reviewing a study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association in 2014, you’ll likely agree that it’s much safer for cannabis to be doled out than most prescription opioids.

There will be more than Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton on the ballot this November, voters heading to the polls in nine states will also be deciding on Marijuana.

Collectively, these marijuana measures mean more voters will be weighing in on cannabis issues than any other year in American history.

Rabbi Jeffrey Kahn and his family opened Takoma Wellness Center, a medical marijuana dispensary in the District of Columbia three years ago.

Chronic headaches, migraines and tension headaches are all painful conditions which can have debilitating effects on patients’ lives. An estimated 50% of the world’s population suffers from headache disorders, with over 2.7 million migraine sufferers reported in Canada.

Arkansas election officials approved a medical marijuana proposal for the ballot Wednesday, putting two measures to legalize the drug for patients with certain conditions before voters this fall.

Secretary of State Mark Martin’s office said supporters of the proposed constitutional amendment turned in 97,284 valid signatures from registered voters, exceeding the 84,859 needed to qualify for the ballot. Martin’s office in July approved a competing medical marijuana proposal for the ballot.

If you’ve been following drug policy developments in recent months, you will no doubt have heard that Germany is on the brink of legalising medical cannabis.

The details of the new law – which was presented to parliament in July, and is expected to come into force by the end of the year – have been discussed at length in the press. Cannabis will, for the first time, be covered by public health insurance, patients will be able to obtain their cannabis on prescription from a pharmacy, and those who wish to take advantage of the new system will (according to some reports) be required to first obtain a letter from their physician stating that cannabis is a last resort.