Members of a special committee examining the proposal to expand access in Brazil to cannabis-based medicines want to endorse the planting of the herb—a measure that Anvisa (National Health Surveillance Agency) vetoed last week.
The effort, however, might be halted by the evangelical bench, which rejects corporate marijuana cultivation.
The commission was created in June by Congressional leader Rodrigo Maia (DEM-RJ) to bring together projects on the medicinal use of marijuana.
The rapporteur of the committee, Deputy Luciano Ducci (PSB-PR), said that he intends to put forth the cultivation proposal for endorsement.
"We will present to Brazil a regulatory framework for Cannabis," he says. "We want to work on a regulation that allows us to plant, produce medicines, do research, and export and import medicines and raw materials," he says.
For him, the decision made by most Anvisa directors to veto the planting was wrong. "It is nonsense to make planting for medical purposes unfeasible. If you are going to plant, you will be monitored."
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon