DENVER (AP) – Citing scant research, Colorado health officials voted Wednesday against adding post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of ailments eligible for treatment with medical marijuana.
The 6-2 vote came despite a recommendation from Colorado Chief Medical Officer and a panel of physicians to make PTSD the first condition added to Colorado’s medical pot eligibility list in 15 years. Board members said they weren’t swayed by the recommendation because studies on using pot for PTSD are lacking.
“We can’t have physicians counseling people in favor of it because we don’t have data to show it’s correct,” said Jill Hunsaker-Ryan, one of the board members who voted no.
The vote was the third time the board has rejected petitions to add PTSD to the list. About five dozen PTSD sufferers attended the hearing, some loudly jeering. A few were asked to leave.
“They just told every patient here, ‘We don’t care about you,'” said patient advocate Teri Robnett after the vote.