In October, Poles Spent a Record PLN 42.6 Million on Medical Cannabis

Record spending by Poles on medical cannabis in October 2024 is evidence of the growing demand for hemp products for medicinal purposes. How did regulatory changes, availability of raw materials, and patient attitudes affect this? Let’s check.

Medical cannabis by the numbers: Record sales in October 2024

In October 2024, Poles spent as much as PLN 42.6 million on medical cannabis, which is a record result in the history of sales of this product in Poland. According to data from PEX prepared for RynekZdrowia.pl , in one month, patients purchased 90,388 packages of hemp-based preparations. This is PLN 5.7 million more than the total sales in 2022 (PLN 36.9 million) and almost 1/3 of the total expenditure in 2023 (PLN 143.3 million).

In total, in 2024 (from January to October), Poles spent PLN 286.9 million on medical cannabis. These numbers clearly show that the popularity of cannabis for medicinal purposes is constantly growing.

Increased demand from Poles and patient response to regulatory changes

Since August 2023, there has been a steady increase in medical cannabis sales. Although in August the number of packages sold briefly fell below 25,000, in January 2024 it was already 33.600 packages, in March over 44,000, and in August and September it exceeded 79,000 packages per month .

Before the new regulations restricting access to medical cannabis came into force (November 7th, 2024), patients were buying up available products en masse. Pharmacists report:

“They bought everything they could. They didn’t care about the manufacturer or the prices.”

As a result, in the last months before the changes, many pharmacies ran out of the most popular varieties of cannabis.

What does the ban on prescription machines and teleconsultations change?

From November 2024, doctors must personally examine the patient before issuing a prescription for medical cannabis. The possibility of obtaining a prescription through so-called prescription machines or teleconsultations has been eliminated. The new regulations aim to:

Ending the misuse of cannabis for non-medical purposes.
Increasing patient safety by limiting access to potentially addictive substances.
In addition to cannabis, the ban also applies to other substances such as morphine, fentanyl, and oxycodone. The exception is continued treatment by primary care physicians.

The future of the medical cannabis market in Poland

The new regulations are intended to limit the use of medical cannabis for recreational purposes by Poles. However, their full effect will not be visible for several months. Experts fear that:

Limited access to medical cannabis may lead some patients to seek alternatives on the black market.

Seriously ill patients sometimes have to travel dozens of kilometers to the nearest cannabis clinic.

The lack of product diversity in pharmacies will continue to be a challenge for many Poles.

The demand for medical cannabis in Poland is growing, as shown by record sales results. The key challenge for the market will be to increase the diversity of products and adapt the offer to the needs of patients with different therapeutic requirements.

Record sales of medical cannabis in October 2024 are evidence of the importance of cannabis in treating a variety of conditions. Regulatory changes, although aimed at increasing safety, may make access to products more difficult for some patients. The future of the market depends on the appropriate balance of regulations and the expansion of the range available in pharmacies.

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(Featured image by RDNE Stock project via Pexels)

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First published in Fakty Konopne. A third-party contributor translated and adapted the article from the original. In case of discrepancy, the original will prevail.

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