Israel: New Medical Marijuana Prescriptions Doubled in October Following War With Hamas

Medical marijuana prescriptions in Israel were drastically higher in October than in previous months.

According to data released by the Israel Ministry of Health, there were 2,200 new people prescribed medical marijuana in October, bringing the total number of patients to around 132,000. The 2,200 new patients is roughly double the amount of new patients seen in recent months. In total doctors prescribed around 11,400 pound worth of medical marijuana in October alone.

As described in a recent press release, “Many of the medical cannabis patients receiving new licenses are war casualties, as doctors began issuing licenses for post-trauma to victims of the recent events.”

There has also been an increase in patients using higher amounts of medical marijuana, with 29,752 patients holding a license for 40 grams of cannabis per month, 27,382 patients for 50 grams, and 25,709 patients for 20 grams. Additionally, 20,516 patients have licenses for 30 grams, 13,211 for 60 grams, and about 15,000 patients for 70 grams per month or more.

Last month the Israel Ministry of Health issued a press release stating that “Patients whose licenses have expired or are set to expire between 16/9/23 and 8/11/23 will be given an automatic extension of three months.”

The Ministry also established a system to get new medical marijuana products to patients “who are not at their homes due to the war and whose cannabis products are not with them”.