On April 1, Canada will see a change to its medical marijuana policies and regulations. The government is changing the medical marijuana industry, allowing only commercial-sized companies to produce and distribute marijuana to people with valid prescriptions.

The new rules, which Canada will begin enforcing on April 1, will replace the current “Marijuana Medical Access Program.”  Under these rules, Canadians who are currently licensed to possess medical marijuana will no longer be able to grow their own marijuana, or purchase it from small-scale producers.

Health Canada, the country’s health-care system, claims that the new system will make it easier for patients who need medical marijuana to get safer, more standardized products through large-scale companies.  The Peace Naturals Project is one of six large-scale medical marijuana distributors picked by Health Canada to grow and distribute to patients.  The company offers about 14 different strains of medical marijuana to its customers.

“We don’t sell anything or provide anything that’s going to cure.  We’re just trying to make things a little bit better through relief and self-care,” said Mark Gobuty, CEO & Founder of The Peace Naturals Project.

Though the medical marijuana movement is rapidly growing, doctors are still skeptical providing it to patients.  Despite scientific research, some doctors are not comfortable prescribing the drug to patients.

“We have now been made into the gatekeepers of people using marijuana in a very peculiar way.  It’s a very uncomfortable position for us to be in.”  Said Dr. William Cunningham, president of Doctors of British Columbia.

The new Marijuana for Medical Purposes regulations will require for patients to present a signed document when purchasing medical marijuana, as opposed to the current Health Canada permit.  Dr. Danial Schacter, a doctor who prescribes medical marijuana, says that the new rules and regulations are changing the image of marijuana, bringing it out of the “black alley industry”, and making it mainstream and corporate.