The NHS is not prescribing cannabis flower medication to any patients, including those with conditions such as epilepsy, chronic pain, and cancer, according to new research from the Cannabis Industry Council (CIC).
Through a Freedom of Information (FoI) request, the CIC asked 152 NHS Foundation Trusts in England how many individuals they had prescribed cannabis flos (flower) to between 2019 and 2023. Not one NHS Trust replied to say they had ever prescribed cannabis flower to patients during this timeframe.
Just 27% of the NHS Foundation Trusts replied to say that they prescribed licensed cannabis medicines – such as Epidyolex and Sativex – to their patients. The remainder either said they didn’t (38%), or didn’t reply (35%).
The FoI request also found that just 1,104 patients in 2023 were prescribed licensed cannabis medicines, an increase of just 127 patients compared to 2021. The number of children prescribed licensed cannabis medicines fell during this timeframe.
“These shocking findings from the Cannabis Industry Council show how the NHS is failing patients in desperate need. When prescription cannabis was legalised six years ago, this was not the situation that patients were promised or expected,” said CIC Co-Chairs Dr Callie Seaman and Jamie Bartley.
“It’s time for the NHS to take action to expand public funding of cannabis medicines. A clear pathway should be established for patients to access prescriptions via the NHS, while private prescriptions could also be reimbursed by the public purse.”
The findings, published to coincide with Medical Cannabis Awareness Week, come despite prescription cannabis being legalised in 2018 for treating any medical condition. Prescription cannabis medicines can be critical for patients, particularly those with rare or chronic conditions that other medicines can’t manage effectively.
There are an estimated 45,000 patients prescribed medical cannabis in the UK private sector, which is significantly lower than in countries such as Germany and Australia. Due to the challenges of accessing prescription cannabis, some adult patients resort to using addictive opioid painkillers or anti-depressants, while parents are forced to spend thousands per month to treat their children. It is estimated that 1.8 million people in the UK are still accessing cannabis from the illicit market for medicinal reasons.
