Medical Marijuana Can Now Be Prescribed For Insomnia In New Mexico As State Expands Its Program

The New Mexico Department of Health’s Medical Cannabis Program (MCP) announced the expansion of its list of qualifying conditions for enrollment: insomnia. More common than ever, insomnia will officially be on the list as of June 1, 2023, according to the department's website.

A petition asking for insomnia to be included as a qualifying condition for the medical marijuana program was submitted to the board in March. It was approved unanimously by the board members, making it a 30th qualifying condition for the program.

“Even though patients may access cannabis without a medical cannabis card through the adult use program, by including insomnia in the list of qualifying conditions, patients would have increased opportunity to discuss with their medical provider how cannabis can be used to impact their insomnia and help them sleep better,” Department of Health secretary Patrick M. Allen stated. “From a health equity perspective, medical cannabis can offer a legal alternative to the expensive medications sometimes utilized by those suffering with insomnia.”

The previous condition that was added in December was anxiety, with the department citing that roughly 465,000 (up to 25%) of the state's adult population could be experiencing the effects of this disorder.

Study Confirms Cannabis Helps With Insomnia Problems

According to a study published in the Journal of Sleep Research in December, marijuana is an effective treatment for this sleep disorder, with up to 80% of participants improving their quality of sleep with marijuana. 

The researchers at the National Institute of Integrative Medicine in Melbourne, Australia, also examined tolerability with 96% of participants agreeing that cannabis oil was an acceptable treatment for insomnia, even though as many as 83% experienced non-serious side effects like dry mouth, nausea, vertigo and diarrhea while 14% had no side effects at all. 

Adding insomnia to New Mexico's list could spike medical marijuana sales even more. Adult-use sales have also been booming in the Land of Enchantment, with March hitting a record $32 million.

Photo: Benzinga edit with images by Edgard from Pixabay and DANNY G on Unsplash