SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The California Department of Public Health (CDPH) is considering Regulation Package DPH-24-005: Serving Size and Age – Industrial Hemp, a proposal that would make permanent Governor Newsom’s emergency hemp regulations set to expire in September. While intended to curb access to intoxicating hemp-derived products, these regulations are unintentionally eliminating access to life-saving full-spectrum CBD therapies relied upon by thousands of Californians, particularly children with seizure disorders.
In September 2024, Governor Newsom issued emergency regulations through CDPH in response to the legislature’s failure to pass AB 2223. The intent was to restrict access to intoxicating THC products—such as gummies and beverages—sold outside the state’s regulated cannabis system, often without age verification in convenience stores and gas stations.
Americans for Safe Access (ASA), a leading medical cannabis advocacy group, is urging the Department to include a carve-out for orally ingested, full-spectrum hemp CBD products containing a CBD:THC ratio of 15:1 or higher. These products are non-intoxicating, have no recreational appeal, and cannot be economically produced under California’s cannabis licensing system.
“ASA fully supports the regulation of cannabinoid products. But banning full-spectrum CBD formulations would strip access from patients who depend on these non-intoxicating, medically necessary therapies,” said Steph Sherer, Founder and Executive Director of ASA.
“We are asking for a small, targeted exemption—nothing more than the right for patients to keep their medicine.”
Americans for Safe Access submitted written testimony to the hearing that included comments from Bonni Goldstein, MD, a nationally recognized medical cannabis expert:
“Banning naturally occurring, full-spectrum CBD hemp products would cause serious harm to vulnerable patients who have achieved stability and symptom control with these formulations—many for over a decade,. Children with intractable epilepsy, adults with chronic pain and dementia, and countless others would face debilitating symptoms or even life-threatening seizure recurrence if access is cut off. These products are non-intoxicating and pose no recreational appeal. Eliminating them would criminalize desperate patients trying to preserve quality of life.”
ASA’s proposed solution is a narrowly tailored exemption that protects patient access without undermining the public safety goals of the regulation.
The organization is requesting that the following language be added:
“Except for full-spectrum hemp cannabinoid oil-based products intended for medical use with a ratio of 15:1 CBD to THC (or higher).”
“Additional language requiring these products to demonstrate compliance with California cannabis product requirements would be acceptable,” Sherer said. “However, the Governor and legislature should also address the root causes of the unregulated cannabis market—namely, the crushing tax structure, the lack of incentives for businesses to serve patients, and the absence of federal action. We need Congress to pass national medical cannabis legislation.”
