France on Wednesday formally notified the European Commission of its regulations on the production and authorisation of medical cannabis, a key administrative step towards finally fully legalising its use.
"It is a new step towards the development of a regulated access to medical cannabis in France," the Health Ministry said in a statement in which it extended access to the drug for the hundreds of patients involved in the experiment, through the end of March 2026.
The experiment ended in December 2024, and patients had initially been given a six-month extension, leading to concern from them and their doctors that they would be forced to find alternative treatments, which have proven difficult to find.
In 2023, lawmakers had voted to approve the sale of medical cannabis products for a five-year period, but the law was never acted because it required the Health Ministry to send it to the European Commission.
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