Texas lawmakers have approved a bill to broaden the state’s medical cannabis program, sending it to Governor Greg Abbott for potential signing into law. The measure, championed by Representative Ken King (R), received overwhelming support, passing the House with a 138-1 vote and the Senate unanimously at 31-0.
The newly approved legislation significantly expands the list of qualifying medical conditions for cannabis use. It now includes chronic pain, traumatic brain injury (TBI), Crohn’s disease, and other inflammatory bowel diseases. Additionally, it allows patients in palliative or hospice care to access medical cannabis.
Patients will benefit from a wider selection of cannabis product types, including patches, lotions, suppositories, approved inhalers, nebulizers, and vaping devices. Furthermore, the bill mandates an increase in the number of medical cannabis business licenses from three to fifteen, enabling dispensaries to open satellite locations.
Initially, the House had proposed a more extensive list of qualifying conditions, including glaucoma, spinal neuropathy, and degenerative disc disease, along with provisions to allow military veterans to register as cannabis patients for any medical condition. However, these provisions were scaled back by the Senate before reaching a final agreement over the weekend.
A notable change in the final version is the removal of a requirement for chronic pain patients to have tried opioids for at least 90 days before accessing medical cannabis. TBI was reintroduced as a qualifying condition after discussions between lawmakers, and Crohn’s disease, along with other inflammatory bowel diseases, was added back into the bill on the Senate floor.
Under the new bill, patient registrations will last for one year, allowing for up to four refills of a 90-day supply of cannabis products. Each package can contain up to 1 gram of total THC, with a limit of 10 mg per dose. The bill also clarifies that physicians may prescribe multiple packages of low-THC cannabis to a patient within a 90-day period.
Although the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) cannot unilaterally add new qualifying conditions as initially proposed, the bill allows physicians to petition the department to report the potential benefits of cannabis for specific conditions, which could prompt legislative action.
Privacy protections for patient information are included, ensuring that data is confidential and can only be accessed by the department, registered physicians, and dispensaries. Regulators are required to establish rules for the expanded program by October 1.
Heather Fazio, executive director of the Texas Cannabis Policy Center, expressed satisfaction with the legislative expansion, noting that many patients have been excluded from the Compassionate Use Program for years.
If signed into law, this bill will enhance Texas’s existing medical cannabis framework, which currently allows access to limited non-smokable products containing no more than 0.5 percent THC by dry weight. Amid ongoing debates over cannabis legislation in Texas, another recent bill aims to ban consumable hemp products containing any THC, even though federal law permits up to 0.3 percent THC by dry weight.
Despite pushback from Democrats who view this as an infringement on personal liberties, activists continue to pursue local cannabis decriminalization efforts in various cities, including Kyle, where they hope to place an initiative on the ballot this November. Meanwhile, lawmakers are advancing research initiatives into psychedelic substances like ibogaine, aiming to support clinical trials for treating opioid use disorder and other serious mental health conditions.
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