But according to experts, the official decree is "legally fragile" and could be overturned by the High Court.
France has authorized the production and cultivation of cannabis for medical use in order to begin to consider the development of a national sector. A decree published in the official journal, which will come into force on March 1, specifies the conditions and procedures relating to therapeutic cannabis.
France has imported cannabis-based products for its experimentation with the use of medical cannabis, the decree was published with the aim of "allowing the creation in France of a sector ranging from cultivation to the medical use of cannabis ". But further regulations are needed to truly develop a therapeutic cannabis system. Yann Bisiou, lecturer in private law and criminal sciences, noted shortcomings in this decree.
“In principle, the decision to promote the therapeutic use of cannabis is a very good thing. Unfortunately here, the device is extremely complex, without public health reason, and in addition, it is legally fragile with regard to the French constitution and European law ”, he explains to mugglehead.
Bisiou says the decree is as flawed as the recent decree that banned the sale of CBD flowers, and suggests it won't survive an appeal to the Council of State, the country's highest administrative court. Last month, this jurisdiction temporarily suspended the controversial ban on CBD.
The ANSM has been piloting a highly regulated medical cannabis program for almost a year, which will continue until next March. The study involves approximately 3000 patients with serious pathologies such as multiple sclerosis and severe epilepsy.
On Thursday, the ANSM said it had set up a temporary scientific committee to define the specifications for cannabis-based drugs that will be produced in France. This group is made up of 11 members from different ministries, representatives of the National Institute for Research on Agriculture, Food and the Environment as well as the Order of Pharmacists.
Although France has a rate of high cannabis use compared to other countries of the European Union, the implementation of a recreational program seems unlikely for the moment. Last month, the lower house of parliament rejected a bill that proposed a state-controlled market for adult use.
