Michigan Adds Cerebral Palsy to Cannabis Qualifying Conditions

Michigan has added cerebral palsy to the list of conditions that qualify for medical cannabis, the Detroit Free Press reports.

Michigan’s Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs oversees the conditions list and decided to add cerebral palsy to the list of more than 25 qualifying conditions. The department also considered chronic aggressive behavior but decided not to add that condition to the Michigan medical cannabis program.

Cerebral palsy is a neurological condition affecting more than 750,000 people in the United States. Some speculate that a likely cause for cerebral palsy is an injury during childhood brain development. Medical cannabis, meanwhile, has been shown to help with symptoms of spasticity, abnormal motor control, pain, and can cause a reduction in seizures. The majority of sufferers — more than 500,000 — are under the age of 18.

Michigan also approved full adult-use legalization last year but any person under the age of 21 who needs cannabis still has to go through the state’s medical cannabis program. Michigan’s medical cannabis program currently has 294,000 patients.

Meanwhile, Michigan cannabis patients can now renew or register their patient ID cards via a new online portal that opened in January.