Switzerland allows citizens to buy recreational cannabis products from pharmacies

Switzerland, a leading drug country, is considering allowing its citizens to purchase recreational cannabis products from pharmacies.

And the federal government in Switzerland began in 2019 to follow this trend, by launching pilot projects in some regions that allowed about 5,000 people to smoke cannabis legally, which led to changes in laws prohibiting the consumption of cannabis that date back to 1951.

Before agreeing a few days ago, to launch similar pilot programs for the consumption and sale of cannabis in other major cities, such as Zurich, Geneva and Lausanne.

These trials aim to examine the effect of regulated supply of cannabis on consumers’ consumption and health.

According to the Swiss Ministry of Health, about 70 percent of citizens demand liberalization of cannabis laws in 2021, 12 percent more than those who called for a similar decision three years ago.

“Switzerland took a different direction, by going directly towards legislation, as is the case in some US states, Canada and Uruguay,” says Marc Walter, a professor of psychiatry from the University of Basel. Of course, I prefer this option as a scientist, because the idea is based on conducting specific experiments. Come up with clear results and then develop specific organizational models based on these results.

In April 2020, the authorities allowed hundreds of people in Basel to buy cannabis from pharmacies for recreational purposes, under a pilot programme.

This pilot project involved local government, the University of Basel and the city’s university psychiatry clinics. They were allowed to buy cannabis from nine pharmacies participating in the two-year pilot program.

Among the thousands of applicants for the first experiment in the city located near the Swiss borders with France and Germany, the number of people selected was 400, and their ages ranged from 18 to 76 years.

After two and a half years, all those who participated in these experiments were questioned by specialists to find out the effect of the substance on their mental and physical health.

The Federal Office of Public Health had confirmed at the time that anyone (among the participants) caught trying to sell cannabis would be punished and expelled from the project.

A study conducted by the Swiss government years ago concluded that one out of every four young people smokes hashish on a semi-regular basis.

According to local sources, about 3,000 residents of Zurich will be able to buy regulated doses of cannabis for personal use within the framework of a three-year scheme, starting in the summer. However, they will have to complete a questionnaire every six months about their consumption habits and health.

Participants, with the exception of pregnant women, professional drivers and adults with health problems due to drug use, will be able to buy cannabis from pharmacies, dispensaries and clubs.

“People are happy, because for the first time they will be able to buy (cannabis) legally,” said Lukas Meister, owner of one of the pharmacies participating in the programme.

Paul (42 years), one of the participating citizens, who asked not to publish his last name, considered this decision “1000 times better” than what he was doing, noting that for the past 25 years he had been buying the products he wanted from “strange people or criminals.” ” in the street.

He indicated that this step allows him to obtain “pure organic cannabis” grown in Switzerland, and the Swiss authorities guarantee its quality.

The Federal Office of Public Health has previously considered that the idea behind these programs is to better understand “alternative organizational forms”, such as regulated sales with official vendors.

By law, the cultivation and sale of cannabis is prohibited in Switzerland, but the public health authority acknowledges that consumption of the drug is widespread in the country.

The Netherlands also recently launched a pilot program to sell cannabis in the municipalities of Tilburg and Breda.