Australians suffering from a range of medical conditions including nausea from chemotherapy, chronic pain, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy and other neurological conditions will be able to access medical marijuana after legislation passed through parliament yesterday.

Amendments to the Narcotic Drugs Act were announced by Health Minister Susan Ley, allowing people suffering from serious illness to access medical cannabis products.

The legislation allows the growing of cannabis for medical and scientific purposes. Previously, laws permitted importation of raw cannabis products into Australia for medical purposes, but cultivation of the plant was illegal.

In a statement, Ms Ley said “This is an historic day for Australia and the many advocates who have fought long and hard to challenge the stigma around medicinal cannabis products so genuine patients are no longer treated as criminals.”

“This is the missing piece in a patient’s treatment journey and will now see seamless access to locally-produced medicinal cannabis products from farm to pharmacy,” she said.

Under the new scheme, patients with valid prescriptions can possess and use medical cannabis products manufactured from cannabis plants legally cultivated in Australia, so long as the supply is appropriately authorised under the Therapeutic Goods Act 1989 and any relevant state and territory legislation.

Ms Ley said this will simplify arrangements around the legal possession of medicinal cannabis products, placing them in the same category as restricted medicines such as morphine, rather than an illicit drug. This will in turn reduce any barriers to access, no matter what state a patient lives in.

The Therapeutic Goods Administration will hand down an interim decision on scheduling cannabis for medicinal purposes next month, and an independent advisory committee will be established to oversee the rollout of a national regulator for medicinal cannabis.

However the decision does not change the status of decriminalising of cannabis for general cultivation or recreational use it’s still illegal and a law enforcement issue for each state and territory.

There will be two types of cannabis licences issued by the government. One will authorise the cultivation of cannabis to make medical products and the other will authorise the use of cannabis in medical research.

Licence holders will need to ensure that their crops are carefully secured and accounted for so they don’t become diverted for illicit uses. To get a licence you will need to pass a “fit and proper person” test so bad news for anyone who is inspired by the TV show Weeds and wants to find a loophole to grow and sell pot.