Since March of this year, patients can receive cannabis on prescription. Since n several thousand applications have been received by health insurance companies, well over half have been approved. This is due to figures from two largest legal coffers, AOK and Barmer.

At AOK, 6,600 applications for reimbursement of medical cannabis were received by beginning of November, a spokesman said on request of time online. 65% of se applications were approved. However, not all or applications were rejected, many were only formally not complete and could be revised and re-submitted by doctor and patient. "Often, for example, legally prescribed medical justification of application or explanations of previous rapies are missing," said spokesman.

Again and again, AOK also received applications from patients who do not have any diseases within meaning of law or where standard rapies have not been exhausted. It is sometimes case of herniated discs that have only been treated with heat rapy. Individual cases like this often exist.

The second largest statutory health insurance company, Barmer, has also approved most applications for cost of cannabis rapy. Since release of cannabis for medical purposes, almost 2,900 applications for costs have been received, as Berliner Zeitung reported by citing figures from cashier. About 1,700 applications were approved, i.e. about two thirds. The rest was rejected.

"No Panacea"

The lack of evidence that treatment alternatives have been tried out unsuccessfully or are not at all questioned was also one of main reasons for rejection of Barmer. "Medical cannabis is an indispensable part of supply of seriously ill people today. But it is not a panacea, "said Barmer chief Christoph Straub of newspaper.

The rejection rate is refore lower than first figures had suggested. In summer, it was said that coffers had negatively affected up to two thirds of applications, as newspaper reported.

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Last March, severely ill patients were made easier to access cannabis. Cannabis can, for example, be prescribed in form of flowers at expense of health insurance. But cashiers have to agree. According to law, all usual rapies have failed. Prior to amendment of law, statutory coffers had only come up in individual cases for expensive rapy.

However, federal government continues to reject a general legalization of cannabis. The health dangers posed by cannabis abuse especially in adolescents and adolescents are medically proven, according to a response to a request from FDP group. A recently published study confirmed risks of cannabis use for intoxication, government said. The ban on cannabis serves to protect health of population.

According to federal government, two municipalities have so far applied for model projects for controlled delivery of cannabis as a stimulant: Berlin district of Friedrichshain-Kreuzberg and city of Münster. Both applications were rejected. The model projects do not contribute to health care of population, nor could y prevent misuse of narcotics and drug addictions.

As answer furr indicates, approximately 1.2 million citizens aged between 18 and 64 years are consuming cannabis at least ten times a year. Around 630,000 citizens consume cannabis at least 60 times a year.

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