Resistance Against Planned Restrictions
A conflict is brewing in German drug policy. Health Minister Nina Warken (CDU) is planning far-reaching restrictions on access to medical cannabis. What initially sounds like regulation and safety could in practice endanger the supply of medical cannabis to hundreds of thousands of patients.
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More than 57,000 people have already signed the „MedCanG“ (Medical Cannabis Act) petition. Leading industry representatives, including David Henn, CEO of Cologne-based Cannamedical, stand behind the initiative. „We need legislation that improves access to medical cannabis – not restricts it,“ Henn explains.
Video Prescriptions Set to Be Eliminated
The core of the planned reform: the ability to prescribe medical cannabis via online video consultation is to be abolished. In the future, prescriptions will only be issued after an in-person initial consultation at a doctor’s office – and dispensing exclusively through pharmacies.
Until now, it has been relatively easy for patients to obtain a prescription: a brief video consultation with a doctor was sufficient to have the medication delivered to their home. Some providers promoted this system intensively – too intensively, according to the ministry. Warken now wants to put a stop to it.
Concerns About Supply Gaps
For many patients, this could have serious consequences. „Especially people with limited mobility or in rural regions will suffer,“ warns Cannamedical CEO Henn. In areas where doctors and pharmacists are already scarce, supply gaps threaten to emerge.
The reform would also have massive economic impacts. Finn Age Hänsel, founder of Sanity Group, calculates: „If the draft is implemented in this form, the medicinal cannabis market will collapse by around 50 percent.“ The young industry, which has created thousands of jobs in recent years, sees its very existence threatened.
Industry estimates put annual revenue for medicinal cannabis in Germany at around one billion euros – a market that could shrink significantly due to the regulation.
Hope Placed on SPD and Parliament
The coming weeks will be decisive. The bill will now be debated in the Bundestag, and the industry is placing great hope in the SPD as coalition partner. Their position has been cautious so far, but many patient advocacy groups are appealing to social policy responsibility.
Philipp Schetter, CEO of Berlin-based start-up Cantourage, expressed cautious optimism in the WirtschaftsWoche podcast „Chefgespräch.“ He considers dispensing through pharmacies fundamentally sensible, but emphasizes: „Whether consultations really have to take place physically on-site or can be conducted digitally should be discussed in a differentiated manner.“
Between Trust and Mistrust
The industry agrees: yes, there are bad actors. Some providers have attempted to blur the line between the legal medical market and recreational use. But the planned restrictions would impact the entire supply – including that of many chronically ill patients who depend on cannabis to relieve pain, spasticity, or sleep disorders.
Since medical cannabis was legalized in 2017, a dynamic market has developed. Numerous companies cultivate, import, and distribute medicinal flowers and extracts – always under medical supervision and government oversight. Many patients report significantly improved quality of life, reduced dependence on opioids, and more stable symptoms.
Now this progress threatens to stall. While the minister insists on regulation, doctors, patients, and businesses fear that bureaucratic hurdles will have the opposite effect: less supply security, less trust, and more black market activity.
Setback Instead of Progress?
What began as an attempt to prevent abuse could become a setback in patient care. While other countries are simplifying access to medical cannabis, Germany threatens to abandon its current course.
The industry therefore demands improvements: clear guidelines, but with moderation – and drug policy that reconciles medical necessity with patient protection.
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