Medical cannabis

The facilitations for medical hemp have finally come into force and a new era has begun. Doctors can now prescribe hemp containing THC without having to apply for an exemption permit.

This amendment to the Narcotics Act, which has now come into force, allows cannabis medicines to be prescribed by doctors without an exemption permit from the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH).

• The FOPH's overview page contains the draft amendments to the ordinances and the accompanying explanatory reports.

The seven-year phase in which these new possibilities are being explored and evaluated is currently underway. However, as long as health insurance companies do not pay for such cannabis medicines (this will continue to be discussed over the next few years), only a few patients will be able to afford these preparations.

• The FOPH's overview page provides an overview of the new situation regarding the medical use of cannabis.
• The Swiss Society for Cannabis in Medicine provides information on use and therapy recommendations.
• Current legal situation: THC & Law > Medicine

• Fall 2022: The new era in hemp in medicine
• From 2023 sale of cannabis medicines [German] (schweizerbauer.ch, 20.10.2022)
• Summer 2022: Hemp in medicine: Before the start of the new era
• Cannabis as a medicine – a hurdle race [German] (srf.ch, 27.4.22, in reference to video report of «Puls» [see below])
• Cannabis - From hippie drug to medical hype [Swissgerman] (feature in the program «Puls» from 25.4.22 on Swiss television)
• The final vote took place on March 19, 2021: The National Council adopted the amendment by 136 votes to 52 with 7 abstentions, the Council of States was unanimously in favor by 44 votes to 0.
• On March 8, 2021, the Council of States unanimously followed the variant of the National Council.
• On January 27, 2021, the Council of States Committee approved the bill by a vote of 10 to 0 with one abstention.
• On December 8, 2020, the National Council clearly approved the bill by 143 votes to 33 with 15 abstentions. All minority motions were rejected.
• Winter 20/21: Deliberations on medicinal hemp have begun
• In October 2020, the Committee for Social Security and Health of the National Council (SGK-N) was the first committee to discuss the facilitation of cannabis medicines and approved this amendment to the NarcA very clearly by 22:3.
• The discussion about easier access for sick people to products containing THC has been going on for several years. The Federal Council has passed the dispatch on this amendment to NarcA and now the parliamentary discussions are beginning.
• 2020: Start of the debate on medical hemp use
• Watson article, summer 2020: problems with medical consumption
• 2019: A second step towards the normalization of hemp as medicine

• An initial training in the field of medical cannabis: cannabis as medicine
• We have published a detailed assessment of this bill here.
• Business 20.060 on parlament.ch
• Overview page from the BAG
• MEDCAN - Medical Cannabis Association Switzerland
• Current legal situation: THC & Law > Medicine