As Mexico approaches full legalization of medical cannabis and research, one company has been a driving force. HempMeds Mexico helped tell the story of Raul Elizalde and his 11-year-old daughter Grace: A family in Mexico wins the right to import CBD (aka: cannabidiol (CBD) hemp oil) to treat Grace’s severe epilepsy.
The Elizalde family’s story spurred an April 28 vote by the Mexican Congress to legalize the use of cannabis for medical and scientific needs.
The bill, which overwhelmingly passed in a general floor vote with 371 in favor, seven against and 11 abstentions, will now be sent to Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto to be signed into law.
The senate’s vote on this law would have stalled if not for vocal advocacy by Elizalde and HempMeds Mexico, which is a subsidiary of San Diego-based Medical Marijuana, Inc. Elizalde’s daughter Grace lives with Lennon-Gastaut Syndrome. The Elizaldes are well-known proponents of medical cannabis; they sued the federal government and won the right to import CBD, or cannabidiol (CBD) hemp oil.
“This changed my life, my daughter’s life, changed life for all the family,” Elizalde recently told Pittsburgh’s Channel 4 News. Grace Elizalde once experienced hundreds of tremors daily. He founded the Por Grace Foundation in her honor as result of the benefits she is receiving from CBD hmp oil, and to supoort cannabis initiatives in Mexico to help other families.
After the Elizaldes’ victory, a legal precedent was set for other families in Mexico to gain access to CBD, including the Maldonado family. The Maldonado were granted the first-ever federal import permit from the Mexican government for a CBD oil made in the US called Real Scientific Hemp Oil-X (RSHO-X), for their 11-year-old daughter Aline.
Dr. Stuart Titus, CEO of Medical Marijuana Inc., (HempMeds is a Medical Marijuana Inc. subsidiary) explained, “HempMeds has furthered the dialogue in Mexico regarding cannabis in general. Having been the first approved company to legally import a cannabis based product in Feb 2016, we have continued to show our leadership role. HempMeds Mexico has been developed, adding to our HempMeds worldwide family of companies. We have sponsored and co-sponsored numerous events within Mexico regarding the legalization of cannabis (Mexico City, Monterrey, Tijuana) as well as sponsored doctor symposiums (Feb 2016, Oct 2016, Feb 2017). Additionally, we have had two favorable research studies performed by Doctors Aguirre and Garza regarding our products. We look forward to another doctor educational event on medical cannabis and CBD this June 28th in Monterrey as well as additional research and study within Mexico in the near future.”
Real Scientific Hemp Oil-X became the first and only cannabis product allowed for import into Mexico from the United States in a decision by Mexico’s FDA, COFEPRIS.
Author bio: Jesse Carpender is a cannabis industry freelance reporter. When not covering the green rush, she’s managing a team of craft and food bloggers for a leading digital publishing platform.
