Poland has undergone a political and societal shift in drug-related attitudes in the past few years, and there are growing indications that cannabis is increasingly accepted as a medicine within this European nation. Recent findings from the Polish Centre for Investigating Public Opinions (CBOS) revealed that 73.4% of Poles support the decriminalisation of cannabis.
Underlying this interest in ending criminal sanctions for cannabis is a burgeoning desire for medical cannabis. Recently published data from the Ministry of Health shows that the medical cannabis market has grown significantly since the policy enactment in 2017. In 2019, only 2,909 prescriptions were issued for medical cannabis in Poland. This number increased to 27,687 prescriptions in 2023 (as shown below). A substantial growth can also be seen in the overall volume of medical cannabis that has been issued. 33.2kg of medical cannabis was dispensed in 2019, compared to 4.6t in 2023 (Figure Two).
