Industry
Renewed partnership to offer cannabis prescribers affordable insurance
Towergate Insurance and the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS) have extended their partnership
Published
1 month agoon
By
Rebecca Bird
Doctors can continue to access more affordable insurance needed to prescribe medical cannabis, thanks to a renewed partnership.
Towergate Insurance and the Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society (MCCS) have signed a mutually beneficial deal for the second year running after a positive initial response.
The arrangement sees Towergate offer medical indemnity insurance to doctors who are members of the society, providing them with protection when prescribing cannabis medicines.
Towergate currently offers private doctors specialised insurance, and through this partnership prescribers are able to access it at a more affordable cost.
Meanwhile, the MCCS, an independent community of medical cannabis pioneers, who are dedicated to making the treatment more accessible to those with chronic conditions, gets a financial boost from the partnership.
The expert-led, not-for-profit community receives 15 per cent of the cost of all first-year subscriptions which go towards its running costs.
Professor Mike Barnes, chair of the MCCS, spoke to Cannabis Health about the benefits of the renewed partnership.
The neurologist and medical cannabis expert explained that while NHS doctors are automatically given indemnity insurance, private doctors have to source their own. But a lack of expert knowledge in most insurance companies has meant that many medical professionals have met a brick wall when attempting to obtain the correct insurance.
He explained that either they could not get it at all or were offered “ridiculously” high quotes – as much as £1,000 per session.
Saving the day is Towergate Insurance which offers the insurance for a fraction of the cost and “is very good and reasonable,” Professor Barnes said.
The company continues to move with changes in the industry and is also looking at creating insurance for doctors that see medical cannabis patients during their normal surgery hours.
Boosting the industry
According to the General Medical Council, the UK’s private doctors must have “adequate and appropriate insurance or indemnity arrangements in place” for their entire practice.
Following the legalisation of medical cannabis in November 2018, private doctors wishing to join the burgeoning industry were required to seek appropriate cover.
This would protect them in case of any financial loss or damages resulting from mistakes made when prescribing the medicine.
“With cannabis it would be extremely unusual because it’s such a safe medicine,” Professor Barnes said. “Even if you write a prescription for the wrong amount it’s unlikely to cause any harm.”
However, as an unlicensed medicine, doctors prescribe it at their own risk, and any damages would be directed at the doctor, not a pharmaceutical company.
“A sensible doctor would not want to do this without insurance to cover just in case he or she did make an error,” Professor Barnes continued.
But existing insurers did not seem to have a policy on that type of cover and what they were able to provide was expensive and patchy, he said.
Ultimately, by offering indemnity insurance, Towergate Insurance has helped to open up the industry in the UK.
“Towergate is the first and at the moment the only one doing it, so well done to them. They have filled a gap and it’s a very important gap, and I think because of them it’s enabled many doctors to prescribe who wouldn’t have otherwise,” said Professor Barnes.
Positive partnership
Following the success of the first year, members of the MCCS have expressed their support for Towergate, particularly the firm’s head of corporate medical, Richard Cupit.
“He’s very helpful and very efficient,” said Professor Barnes.
“I’m not aware that anyone has claimed anything through them…but the feedback of the whole process has been really very positive. He’s done a great job in basically allowing the private cannabis sector to get off the ground.”
Professor Barnes said the partnership is likely to continue on into the future: “It’s a very good partnership. It works for us, it works for them, and it works for the doctors and clinics and other people involved.”
According to its website, 25-year-old Towergate Insurance is moving with the times.
“By working closely with the UK’s leading insurers, professional bodies and experts we can offer relevant cover, helpful guidance and other services that make the best of innovation to make insurance easier,” it states.
Towergate is also a member of the Cannabis Industry Council which brings together organisations to promote the use of cannabis and hemp in various industries.
According to Prof Barnes, a “generous donation” from the firm’s charitable arm has contributed to getting one of the council’s first major lobbying projects off the ground.
In February, Cupit told Cannabis Health: “The benefits of medicinal cannabis in relieving symptoms in patients of any age, across a range of conditions, can be extraordinary and help improve their quality of life.
“Ethically, it is a wonderful sector in which to be involved.”
For more information on Towergate Insurance visit www.towergateinsurance.co.uk
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Industry
CBD by British Cannabis™ launches in Selfridges
The brands collection of 100 per cent cannabis supplements will be available in one of the UK’s most famous premium-retailers.
Published
54 mins agoon
4th July 2022
British Cannabis™ has launched its collection of 100 per cent cannabis supplements and cosmetics in one of the UK’s most famous premium-retailers.
From today (Monday 4 July) the full range of CBD by British Cannabis™ products debuts in Selfridges London at the new Feel Good Bar, located in the Beauty Hall, as well as online.
Since launching seven years ago, British Cannabis™ (listed as CBD Health Foods Ltd) has experienced exceptional demand for its high quality and great tasting CBD products.
Today, the company is to launch their premium, flagship range in Selfridges.
The CBD by British Cannabis™ collection will be showcased in the Beauty Hall at Selfridges London, a place to discover products that spark innovative wellbeing practices and thought-provoking ideas and home to world-leading brands.
CBD by British Cannabis™ products have won multiple awards in recent years, including the Highly Commended 2021, P3 MVP Award for 1000mg CBD Cannabis Oils, ICP magazine’s 2022 CBD Product of The Year, and Your Healthy Living magazine’s 2022 Silver Award for Best CBD Products (for CBD by British Cannabis™ Dermal Patches 500mg).
All of the food supplement products in the CBD by British Cannabis™ collection are included on the Food Standards Agency’s public list of products that are legal for sale on the UK market via the successful submission of British Cannabis’™ Novel Foods applications.
A recent update by the governments Food Standards Agency saw British Cannabis™ ranked as the UK’s largest CBD manufacturer by number of publicly listed CBD products manufactured.
Read more industry news at Cannabis Wealth
More than just CBD – The British Cannabis™ Story
CBD by British Cannabis™ is not ‘just CBD’; these 100 per cent cannabis products contain hundreds of other beneficial cannabis compounds, terpenes, flavonoids, phenols and more.
All of these natural elements and yet still being compliant with regulations and legal for sale within the UK. Each product is rigorously tested for accuracy, purity, and THC-free status for consumer peace of mind.
Every product contains the knowledge and expertise that has been amassed over the last seven years of British Cannabis™ existence, evidenced in the growing, extraction, research, development, and manufacturing that saw this British start-up grow to be the leading authority in consumer cannabis products within the UK.
British Cannabis™ CEO, Thomas Whettem, celebrated the news, commenting: “This is yet another great milestone in the British Cannabis™ story. It is a testament to the levels of excellence we demand within our supply chain and products, that we are now stocked at an iconic, prestige retailer in Selfridges.
“We set out to create ‘the champagne of CBD oils’, with more beneficial cannabis phytochemicals than any other CBD products compliant and legal for sale today. Our premium, THC-free products are both UK-born and UK-manufactured, thus debuting in Selfridges London seems very appropriate.”
British Cannabis™ launched a television campaign in March 2022 for its premium flagship range, CBD by British Cannabis™, as part of a half a million pound investment in awareness building and consumer recruitment 2022/23.
Set in the style of a classic health and beauty advert, the creative aimed to break down barriers to legal cannabis-derived products, gaining broadcaster approval to make more industry-specific references than any campaign to date.
Shown across dozens of premium channels on the SKY and Channel 5 networks, this marked the first time that the SKY network had opened its doors to CBD advertisers on their linear stations since 2019.
British Cannabis™ Managing Director, David Ralson, said: “As proud as we are of our tested, trusted, super-premium CBD supplements and cosmetics, we are equally proud to now be bringing them to the world-class shopping experience at Selfridges, as part of our distribution expansion plans.
“For over a century, Selfridges have brought premium health and beauty products to the forefront in exciting ways – and especially in their new Feel Good Bar. As one of the UK’s original British-made CBD ranges, with a heritage in this young industry of nearly seven years, the match of Selfridges and CBD by British Cannabis™ seems a perfect fit.
“I hope that Selfridges shoppers grow to love and trust our CBD range as much as our existing loyal customer base, who over the years have given us over 1,500 5-star reviews on Trustpilot.”
BRITISH CANNABIS™ can be reached on +44 (0) 203 965 2420 or via email at [email protected]
Find us on LinkedIn – Search ‘BRITISH CANNABIS’ or search ‘@BritishCanna’ for Facebook and Twitter.
Industry
New fully digital cannabis dispensary launches in UK
It aims to streamline the process through which cannabis patients can access their medicine.
Published
4 days agoon
30th June 2022By
Joe Roberts
A new fully digital medical cannabis pharmacy aims to improve the dispensing experience for UK patients.
A new digital dispensing solution has launched in the UK, with the aim of streamlining the process through which cannabis patients can access their medicine.
Through the new system, patients are able to schedule delivery to their home or office, with a 120-minute delivery service in London and Birmingham and next-day delivery across the UK.
Akanda subsidiary, CanMart, has partnered with digital pharmacy infrastructure Phlo Connect and Cellen Life Sciences to bring the project to life.
The process will be increasingly seamless for patients in the near future as Phlo Connect, Cellen and CanMart build additional digital interconnections, Akanda said.
Tej Virk, CEO of Akanda, said: “Akanda is committed to expanding access to high-quality products for anyone in need, and that is qualified in the United Kingdom, a growing market for medical cannabis.
“Phlo Connect and Cellen are the ideal partners to make this happen, combining the UK’s first fully digital pharmacy with a digital dispensing model that is easy to use, secure, and real-time.
“In the nascent UK medical cannabis market, patients currently suffer from excess friction as the prescription process, and last-mile delivery is disjointed.
“We firmly believe that our solution is the best way to satisfy patients and get our 1P and 3P-supplied medical cannabis in their hands quickly and conveniently, which will greatly improve the patient experience.”
The partnership with Phlo Connect builds on CanMart’s existing partnership with Cellen, a health tech company that provides treatment to chronic pain patients through Leva Clinic, as well as through partners including the NHS, and Boots UK.
The Leva Clinic, which is licensed and regulated by the Care Quality Commission, is one of the first fully digital pain clinics in the UK.
Cellen is also a medical cannabis supplier to Project Twenty21, the large-scale medical cannabis observational study monitored by Drug Science that aims to improve access to medical cannabis.
Adam Hunter, CCO of Phlo Connect commented: “We believe partnering with CanMart and Cellen will be a game-changer for medicinal cannabis patients here in the UK.
“By integrating with both CanMart and Cellen via our API-driven pharmacy platform, we believe that this partnership is the first truly end-to-end digital experience for medicinal cannabis patients in the UK.”
He added: “Our patients require access to new high-quality products without the friction and hassle of traditional dispensing services. This partnership is another example of our continuing efforts to build on our national, established relationships with the wider pharmaceutical community in innovative ways.
“We believe that CanMart’s access to high quality products as well as Phlo Connect’s extensive capabilities in dispensing will go a long way to helping our service to our patients.”
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Industry
CiiTECH celebrates five years with five days of CBD offers
CiiTECH’s five-year birthday is a pivotal moment, the company said.
Published
4 days agoon
30th June 2022By
Joe Roberts
Cannabis healthcare company CiiTECH celebrates its fifth birthday and reflects on a turbulent half-decade for the CBD industry.
CiiTECH’s five-year birthday is a pivotal moment, the company said. After what has been one of the most turbulent times for the industry, the firm has achieved six months of stability. With new crypto projects on the horizon and new markets on the cards, the company is gearing up for a period of growth.
CBD is a tough industry to be in right now but that has never stopped CiiTECH CEO and founder, Clifton Flack, from driving the business through regulatory issues and the challenges of an increasingly saturated market.
“When we started the business in 2017 the market was approaching the peak of interest and excitement. Since then, alongside the hundreds of brands that have been born to compete with us, we’ve also faced monumental regulatory pressures and flip-flopping,” Flack said.
“We’re still here though, independent and with a bright future ahead as the coming year ahead brings settled regulations.”
After a stormy start to the year, the FSA delivered on their promise to roll out a framework by which products can be set on a supervised pathway to novel food authorisation. The market is now more difficult than ever to penetrate for new and emerging brands, however it gives established UK CBD companies like CiiTECH an advantage over international companies attempting to penetrate the UK market.
“In parallel, the industry and our peers have had a two year pandemic, Brexit supply chain disruptions and now a cost of living crisis set to put all previous volatilities to shame,” Flack added.
“Now more than ever, cannabis healthcare companies need to take our time, avoid the panic and focus on delivering quality products behind trusted brands that are built for the long term.”
Recently, CiiTECH investigated a stock market listing on the London Stock Exchange but the IPO did not come to fruition.
“As the CEO, I had to make an impossible decision,” Flack said.
“Amongst other things, the timing was just not right. Consumer sentiment and demands are volatile and we found the essence of our company getting lost in bureaucracy at a time when it should have been front of mind.
Yesterday, CiiTECH launched five promotions over five days to celebrate the anniversary of the company.
“As a revenue-driven business, CiiTECH would not be in the position it is today without its army of loyal Provacan customers, so we’re giving back to them the best way we know-how.
“With five days’ worth of promos and freebies to mark five years of success. Our Friday promo emails have become somewhat legendary among our customers but we have never done anything like this before.”
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