France's Medical Marijuana Trial Faces Uncertainty As New Amendment Tries To Keep It Running

The medical marijuana trial has once again been "forgotten" from the 2025 Social Security Financing Bill (PLFSS), but the new amendment aims to get it back, writes Newsweed.

Ensemble pour la République deputies Michel Lauzzana (Lot-et-Garonne) and Jean-François Rousset (Aveyron), with help from Santé France Cannabis proposed an amendment aiming to correct this "oversight," which could leave close to 2,000 people without medical marijuana treatment. The legislation proposes to extend the medical marijuana experiment until medication is authorized and no later than Dec. 31 2025.

Previously, the experiment was set to end in March 2024, but last Oct. it was confirmed that the trial would continue. The country's then Minister for Health Aurélien Rousseau said at the time the experiment resulted in "clinical feedback showing a benefit for the patient." Rousseau added that the reason he would not allow for a full medical marijuana rollout across France is because there’s no "European marketing authorization."

In 2023, France took a step toward the generalization of medical marijuana. On Oct. 23 the government proposed an amendment to the Social Security Financing Bill (PLFSS) concerning medical marijuana. This was the first time medical cannabis law was presented to France’s general medical framework. Under the new proposals, medical marijuana products will be granted a “temporary authorization” for five years, with the possibility of indefinite renewals.

Read Also: UK Experts Warn Of Dangerous NHS Medical Marijuana Trials For Epilepsy Patients, More Updates From Europe

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Impact Of Ongoing Political Issues

The use and health insurance coverage of medical marijuana was expected to start in January 2025, but it was recently confirmed it is unlikely to happen prior to 2026. Why? To meet the 31 December 2024 deadline for medicinal product authorizations, France was required to notify the European Commission (EC) by mid-2024 about aligning cannabis production and distribution with EU law. Despite initial readiness before the summer recess, delays and political uncertainty stalled this process.

The Direction Générale de la Santé (DGS) has stated that the notification hasn't taken place due to ongoing political issues, leaving future government approval uncertain. This notification is essential for advancing the widespread use of medical cannabis as the EC needs up to six months to review it. The legislation must be integrated into French law before ANSM can collect and process drug applications.

The program is in a so-called ‘transition' phase, which means that new patients can't sign up, but those already participating will continue to receive their medication and be reimbursed until a full medical marijuana program is established, writes the Business of Cannabis.

Whether the amendment will be included in the 2025 PLFSS will be decided during the first reading, scheduled for Oct. 28.

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