2023: A Year-End Reflection on the Languid Progress of Medical Cannabis Accessibility in the NHS

As the clock ticks down on the last day of 2023, there's a bittersweet air lingering over the United Kingdom. It was back on November 1, 2018, that a wave of hope swept through patients and their families, fueled by the media campaigns championed by families grappling with treatment-resistant epilepsy in their children. Then Health Secretary Sajid Javid made a pivotal announcement in parliament, ushering in the reclassification of cannabis for medicinal use from a Schedule 1 to a Schedule 2 drug under the Misuse of Drugs Regulations.

This groundbreaking move empowered specialist consultants to prescribe cannabis as a ‘special' or unlicensed medicine, granted it was in the best interest of the patient. The announcement not only brought hope to parents witnessing their children endure countless seizures but also to millions grappling with debilitating conditions that conventional medications had failed to alleviate.

However, the reality that unfolded in the years that followed painted a nuanced picture. While more than 30,000 patients managed to access this treatment, it came at a staggering cost – not just financial, but often exacting an emotional and societal toll. Desperate families resorted to selling or remortgaging their homes, relocating to live with relatives to meet the financial demands of monthly prescriptions. Job losses, revoked driving licenses, evictions, and protracted legal battles became part of the grim narrative. Tragically, some patients are no longer part of this world.

Fast forward to an FOI request submitted by Cannabis Health in August 2023, and the stark reality emerges. From November 2018 to November 2022, only ‘fewer than five' patients secured prescriptions for unlicensed cannabis medicines through the NHS. In contrast, the private sector flourished during the same period, witnessing over 140,000 separate prescriptions for these products issued privately, as per data from the NHS Business Service Authority.

Despite the private sector's growth with 31 clinics and 18 pharmacies prescribing and dispensing cannabis medicines, and over 30 companies importing such medicines, the figures remain a drop in the ocean. The estimated 1.8 million individuals resorting to self-medication with illegally obtained cannabis highlights the gaping hole left by the NHS's sluggish approach. Many more are either unaware of the potential benefits or unwilling to navigate the legal risks.

As the year concludes, the tale of medical cannabis in the UK is not one of unbridled success but rather a reminder of the challenges that persist. The clock resets, and the hope lingers, but the journey towards accessible medical cannabis for deserving patients within the NHS system continues at a glacial pace.