Illinois Could Expand Number of Illnesses Treated by Cannabis

Illinois’ Medical Cannabis Advisory Board
                      Reviewing 14 Additional Conditions or Diseases

                      First hearing scheduled for May 4, 2015

                      SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Medical Cannabis Advisory
                      Board (board) is reviewing 22 petitions requesting 14
                      medical conditions or diseases be added to the
                      Compassionate Use of Medical Cannabis Pilot Program
                      Act.  After its review, the board will hold a hearing
                      on May 4, 2015 at the James R. Thompson Center in
                      Chicago to discuss and listen to technical evidence
                      concerning those 14 medical conditions or diseases.
                      The board will then make a recommendation to the
                      director of the Illinois Department of Public Health
                      about those debilitating conditions or diseases that
                      would benefit from the medical use of cannabis and
                      should be considered for addition to the program.

                      The 14 conditions or diseases for which petitions
                      will be considered are:

                      • Anorexia Nervosa
                      • Anxiety
                      • Chronic Post Operative Pain
                      • Diabetes
                      • Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome
                      • Essential Thrombcythemia with a JAK 2 mutation
                      • Irritable Bowel Syndrome
                      • Migraine
                      • Neuro-Behcet’s Autoimmune disease
                      • Neuropathy
                      • Osteoarthritis
                      • Polycystic kidney disease
                      • Posttraumatic stress disorder
                      • Superior canal dehiscence syndrome


                      Individuals who want to present technical evidence
                      about a petition being reviewed on May 4, 2015 are
                      required to file a statement of intent in writing no
                      later than 15 days prior to the date of the hearing,
                      or by April 18, 2015, with the Division of Medical
                      Cannabis.

                      Citizens can submit petitions to IDPH twice annually
                      – January 1-January 31 and July 1-July 31.  The board
                      will meet twice a year to consider those petitions.

                      The following are members of the board and the
                      experience they bring.

                      • Chairperson – Leslie Mendoza Temple - family
                      medicine
                      • Vice Chairperson – Michael Fine - registered
                      qualifying patient
                      • Marissa Arevalo – parent of a registered patient
                      under age 18
                      • Paul Bachmann – registered qualifying patient
                      • James Champion – registered qualifying patient,
                      veteran
                      • Eric Christoff – internal medicine
                      • John Knaus – Medical oncology
                      • Jacqueline Leskovec – Nurse
                      • David McCurdy – medical ethics
                      • Theresa Miller – Nurse
                      • Jyotin Parikh – pharmacy
                      • Nestor Ramirez - pediatrics
                      • Allison Weathers – neurology