Your questions answered on the medicinal marijuana

Health minister Sussan Ley announced on the weekend that the government will legalise growing marijuana for medicinal use. The government intends to amend the Narcotic Drugs Act so growing cannabis for medical or scientific use won’t violate any of the international drug treaties we’re signatories to.

The move has already invited criticism from Greens leader Richard di Natale, who’s noted that the proposed legislation licenses growers, but does nothing to ensure people who need the medicinal marijuana can access it.

There’s plenty of anecdotal evidence that people have either been importing or otherwise acquiring marijuana for medical purposes. And Ley has pointed out that because demand for medicinal cannabis is high, so are prices.

But won’t those who are inclined to rort the system use the stuff to get high, or sell marijuana intended for medical use on the black market? Can you get high with medicinal cannabis anyway? And will the legislation clear the way for the product to be available in all states or will some miss out?

Here’s your chance to find out.

Put your questions to us and we’ll put them to our experts. You can submit them below in the comments, on Facebook.com/conversationEDU or on Twitter using the #YourQuestionsAnswered hashtag.

We’re taking questions until Friday October 23, and we’ll report back with answers from a full panel of experts on the various aspects of legalising medicinal marijuana soon after.

Nothing is sacred, so ask away.