Poland has seen the number of medical cannabis prescriptions plummet since it moved to crack down on telemedicine prescriptions.
Telemedicine has been a major driver of growth in Poland, the UK and Germany, but increasing concerns around the ease of access and use for non-medical purposes have made this a contentious and highly politicised issue.
With conversations around similar action taking place in both Germany and the UK, Poland may represent the first domino to fall in a Europe-wide crackdown on this growth driver.
Meanwhile, the Polish government is signalling further crackdowns as it proposes a bill which would classify non-intoxicating hemp and CBD as a narcotic.
What happened?
As discussed in Prohibition Partners’ upcoming Global Cannabis Report: 5th Edition, Poland’s medical cannabis industry has flourished in recent years, seeing prescription numbers surge from 11,400 in 2020 to 313,000 in 2023.
The latest data from the e-Health Centre, Poland’s official registry, shows that the market also experienced significant growth during 2023 compared to 2022, seeing consumption volume increase from 800 kilograms to 2,600 kilograms, while the number of patients grew from 36,000 to 90,000. Sales also surged, rising from €15m to €42m.
