Veteran advocate Derek Pyrah has launched a fundraising campaign amid changes to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) medicinal cannabis framework that he says could push veterans off treatment and back onto “high-risk polypharmacy”.
Pyrah, a Royal Australian Air Force veteran and founder of Safer Veterans Australia and No More Zombie Veterans, called for continued independent advocacy for safer, “science-led” approaches to veteran healthcare.
His appeal follows the DVA’s February tightening of its medicinal cannabis framework, which introduced limits on THC strength, restrictions on product types and new in-person consultation requirements.
Pyrah, who spoke on a veteran panel at the recent UIC conference where clinicians said patients had contacted clinics “in tears” after losing access to treatment, warned the changes could create “significant barriers” for some veterans.
He said those in rural areas or with mobility issues were particularly at risk of being “forced into self-funded care or back onto high-risk polypharmacy”.
“Independent advocacy has never been more vital to protect continuity of care and champion safer alternatives,” he said.
After five years of largely self-funding the advocacy work, Pyrah is now seeking community support to cover operating costs of $750 per month for “advocacy, education and outreach”.
The campaign is focused on promoting a science-led shift in veteran healthcare, including greater recognition of the endocannabinoid system in medical education.
It is also aimed at reducing polypharmacy – often characterised by “high-risk, sedative-heavy treatments” – while encouraging evidence-based policy reforms informed by modern research and lived experience.
Pyrah cited research by Phoenix Australia showing that “complex, long-term medication increases risks of dependency, overdose and suicide”.
The veteran said his advocacy was shaped by personal experience after serving in Iraq, including 17 years “trapped” in psychiatric polypharmacy and heavy medication regimes that left him “numb, homeless and estranged” from his family.
“My story is not unique,” he said, pointing to estimates suggesting more than 90,000 Australian veterans live with treatment-resistant post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury.
For more information about the campaign or to support it, click here.