Ukraine Records First Legal Dispensing of Medical Cannabis to Patients

Ukraine has carried out the first legal dispensing of medical cannabis-based medicines, with three patients receiving prescriptions for the treatment in the central city of Vinnytsia, health authorities announced.

The recipients included a woman suffering from multiple sclerosis and two military veterans experiencing chronic neuropathic pain and phantom limb pain following amputations.

All three were prescribed hard capsules containing delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), with treatment beginning at a dose of 5 milligrams to be adjusted later by physicians.

The June 11 dispensing marks the first practical implementation of Ukraine’s medical cannabis legislation after the completion of regulatory procedures needed to launch the program.

Medical cannabis products can currently be obtained at six pharmacies operated by a licensed company in Vinnytsia, Dnipro, Lviv, Ivano-Frankivsk, Ternopil, and Khmelnytskyi. Another 17 pharmacies are expected to begin dispensing the medicines in the near future.

According to the State Service of Ukraine on Medicines and Drugs Control, about 66 public and private entities hold the necessary licenses across 180 locations.

Medical cannabis can be prescribed for a range of conditions approved by the Health Ministry, including chronic and neuropathic pain, spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis, cancer-related symptoms, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, diabetic neuropathy, and Parkinson’s disease.

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Doctors may prescribe the medicines when conventional treatments fail to provide sufficient relief or cause adverse effects.

Patients can receive the drugs only through an electronic prescription issued by a primary care doctor or specialist. The prescription remains valid for 10 days.

Ukraine legalized medical cannabis under Law No. 3528-IX, which came into force on Aug. 16, 2024, paving the way for the regulated production, import, dispensing, and control of cannabis-based medicines aimed at expanding access to treatment for patients with serious conditions.