A doctor must determine that a sick person could be helped with THC therapy and submit a corresponding application to the Federal Office of Public Health FOPH. On the one hand, synthetic products such as dronabinol, also known as Marinol, can be prescribed. On the other hand, products such as Sativex or specially produced tinctures (so-called extemporaneous preparations), which are made from natural cannabis, can also be prescribed. These preparations contain 2.5 to 5 % THC. In addition to the active ingredient content, how the preparation is taken plays a key role. To prevent the products from being misused as stimulants, cannabis flowers or concentrates are not approved.

Dronabinol, for example, is used in Switzerland for the following symptoms, among others: Nausea and vomiting, loss of appetite and emaciation, anorexia and weight loss, spasticity, muscle spasms and muscle stiffness, pain conditions, asthma, glaucoma, epilepsy, sleep disorders and anxiety, and movement disorders. Sick people with these symptoms suffer, for example, from multiple sclerosis, cancer, AIDS, Alzheimer's disease, hepatitis C, anorexia or other serious illnesses. In Switzerland, most exemptions concern cancer, followed by multiple sclerosis.

The whole chain of activities leading to the final product “hemp-based medicine” and having something to do with its distribution to patients is subject to authorization. This includes the cultivation of hemp, the production of medicinal products, the treatment and the trade of cannabis as medicine.

When doctors submit an application to the FOPH for treatment with THC on the basis of their diagnosis, they must do the following:
confirm in writing that they accept responsibility for the consequences of their prescription; provide the name, address, age and written consent of the patient(s); disclose the medication used to date; declare the intended dosage and intended duration of treatment; prepare an interim report on the treatment every six months, as well as a final report for the FOPH; describe the logistics of dispensing the medicine (in doing so, the doctor himself or herself, a pharmacy or a hospital may only dispense the hemp-based medicine directly to patients).

It is positive that one does not have to be out of treatment as in other countries (there is no regular therapy left that could help) to make an exception request.

If the drug is to be dispensed by a pharmacy, it requires an operating license for controlled substances in accordance with Article 11 of the Narcotics Control Ordinance. Such a license is also required if a pharmacy itself wants to produce a medicine from the prohibited cannabis, such as a hemp tincture.

The cultivation of hemp (from 1% THC), which is to be used for the production of medicines, is also regulated by law. Basically, the “grower” needs an operating license or must act on behalf of an authorized company. An application for an operating license must contain the following: sufficient protection against theft; a written contract with an authorized operation; precise information on the type and quantity of cultivation; a guarantee that the entire quantity of cultivation will be delivered to the client.

Due to the low content of active ingredients, the preparations are not suitable for all patients. Thus, some are not spared from supplying themselves on the side on the black market. There is also a strict ban on driving during cannabis therapy, even at low doses, which are intended to prevent a psychoactive effect. The costs are not necessarily covered by health insurance. Thus, not everyone who has a permit can afford this therapy.

The bureaucratic effort deters most potential producers of medical hemp from growing legally. The costs incurred due to the various licensing requirements mean that a drug that has cleared all the hurdles to then be exceptionally approved for treatment is not cheap. The costs can quickly amount to hundreds of francs per month.

From 2012 to 2018, 12,000 exemptions were granted (limited to 6 to 12 months). Soon, an exemption will no longer be necessary, only a doctor's prescription will be required (see box below).

We have summarized the ongoing discussions on changing the legal situation regarding cannabis medicines here.

THC use has multiple effects on the user. If it had no effect, we wouldn't want to use it. There are both positive and negative effects. So there are also undesirable side effects. These two sides exist. The positive side is much stronger than the negative side.

• Assessment of THC use: low-risk, high-risk, addictive?
• Cannabis use and psychosis
• Example of a special permit
• Report on the "Cannabinoids in Medicine" Conference
• Cannabinoids in medicine - an option!
• Help only as an exception: hemp-based medicines
• Cannabis as medicine: interactions
• Cannabis as medicine: dronabinol and marinol
• Further figures from the health study
• How many people smoke pot in Switzerland?
• THC - The forbidden drug
• Cannabis Study 2001, Part 1 - Part 2 - Part 3
• IACM - International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines
• Cannabis as medicine: Wikipedia type

An incomplete collection of links…

• Medical Cannabis Association Switzerland, Zurich
• Swiss Working Group on Cannabinoids in Medicine (SACM)
• Railroad station pharmacy drugstore, 3550 Langnau
• Medical use of cannabis (Federal Office of Public Health FOPH)

• 2019-10-17 | Statement of the association Legalize it! on the amendment of the Narcotics Act (cannabis medicinal products)
• 2019-06-26 | Facilitated access to cannabis medicines: Consultation opened (Federal Office of Public Health FOPH)
• 2019-01-19 | Cannabis as medicine - rules to be relaxed (SRF)
• 2016-10-17 | Cannabis - From wonder herb to the devil's stuff and slowly back (SRF "Puls")
• 2013-02-11 | Cannabis as medicine: Hardly controversial, hardly used (SRF "Puls")
• 2012-05-01 | Cannabis, a medicine with political side effects (bernerzeitung.ch)
• 2011-12-07 | Web update "Cannabis as medicine" of December 7, 2011
• 2011-11-23 | Federal Council's response to interpellation regarding cannabis drops (parlament.ch)

Those who want to transport prescribed narcotics in the Schengen area will find some information here.

• IACM - International Association for Cannabinoid Medicines

• What if Cannabis cured Cancer (Doc-Film 2010, youtube, english)
• The Health Effects of Cannabis and Cannabinoids (Consensus Study Report 2017, english)

• 2014-08-21, Israel: ZDF documentary field service XXL - Hash for the old people's home (youtube)
• 2011-05-05, USA: Toddler gets THC from father (english)
• 2008-11-19, UK: THC against Alzheimer? (english)
  
  

• THC (bio)chemistry: Why is it driving us nuts?
• Trans, levo isomer of delta-9-tetra-hydro-cannabionl (THC).
• An excursion into chemistry and biology

• Psychoactives are everywhere. Dealing with our five favorite drugs
• Cannabis use and psychoses (schizophrenia)
• Tolerance, withdrawal symptoms and dependence with THC

• From smoking to vaporizing: on the evolution of stoner culture
• Three mobile vaporizers in test
• The mobile evaporators are usable
• Evaporation in general
• The Plenty, a new vaporizer
• Two new vaporizers in Legalize it! test
• News from the world of mobile evaporators
• How stable is the Volcano vaporizer?
• Smoking is only one way to consume THC
• vaporize instead of smoking - What makes the vapor healthier?
• Overview of three vaporizers
• Vaporizing instead of smoking - The new desire