French Medical Cannabis Patients Warned That Treatment Will be ‘No Longer Accessible From January’ Amid Political Chaos
French patient associations have warned that medical cannabis patients could soon face a disruption in treatment as its long-running experiment comes to an end with no next steps in place.
The French Society for the Study and Treatment of Pain (SFETD) issued a statement this week warning that ‘in the absence of a decision’ from the now ousted government, ‘these medicines will no longer be accessible from January 01, 2025’.
It comes amid political chaos in the country, which saw the government lose a vote of no confidence on December 04, with parliament rejecting the budget for the coming year.
Despite last-ditch efforts to amend the Social Security Financing Bill (PLFSS) in October to secure a budget for the generalisation of medical cannabis, as promised by the government, the current proposals make no mention of medical cannabis.
Medical cannabis
France’s medical cannabis program has found itself in a disappointingly similar position to this time last year, having once again been left out of the budget for the coming year.
However, unlike the end of 2023, the political backdrop is far more complex, fast-moving, and uncertain.
This annual document lays out the budget for the coming year, and with no mention of medical cannabis, which is currently in a ‘transition’ phase ahead of a full rollout, the future of the program is now at stake.
France’s medical cannabis ‘experiment’ has now been running since 2021 and was widely expected to act as a precursor to a fully fledged medical cannabis system.
After being extended numerous times, seeing the government be repeatedly accused of ‘kicking the can down the road,’ the government finally put plans in place to enable medical cannabis to be ‘generalised,’ beginning in 2025.
