Germany's Health Minister Pushes to End Mail-Order Medical Cannabis After Imports Approach 300 Tons

Carsten Linnemann says telemedicine-driven flower prescriptions have drifted from medicine to consumption, reviving a stalled bill to require in-person visits and pharmacy pickup.

FILE — statehouse · B.D. Gilfry / CC BY-SA 2.0

German Federal Health Minister Carsten Linnemann used a September 15 appearance at the German Pharmacy Conference in Munich to renew pressure for stricter medical cannabis rules, telling delegates that imports of cannabis flower are on pace to hit roughly 300 tons this year, according to his ministry's forecast and reporting by Hanf Magazin.

That figure would mark a tenfold increase over three years, Hanf Magazin reported. Linnemann framed the growth as evidence of misuse rather than medical progress, saying the import volume "broadly no longer has anything to do with medicine" and that "cannabis for consumption at the click of a button via mail order has nothing to do with healthcare anymore," according to remarks relayed by Hanf Magazin.

The Telemedicine Target

The minister's comments were aimed squarely at platforms — many based abroad — that issue private prescriptions after patients fill out online questionnaires, with flowers shipped by mail-order pharmacies, Hanf Magazin reported. A draft bill that has been before the German parliament since late 2025 would require prescriptions to follow direct, in-person contact with a physician, eliminating the questionnaire-only pathway, and would limit dispensing to brick-and-mortar pharmacies, banning mail delivery, according to Hanf Magazin's account of the legislation.

Hanf Magazin noted the draft has circulated for months without a scheduled vote, and that the Munich appearance appeared intended to accelerate that timeline. Under current law, a physician can still issue a prescription after a telemedical consultation provided professional requirements are met, the outlet reported.

Checking the Numbers

Hanf Magazin reported that Germany's Federal Institute for Drugs and Medical Devices (BfArM) revised its first-quarter 2026 import figure upward to 67.6 tons from an initially reported 50.5 tons — a revision that, extrapolated across four quarters, falls within the ministry's 300-ton estimate for the year, according to the outlet's analysis.

Linnemann also cited a nationwide hospital-admissions study by researchers Manthey, Radas and Kraus, published July 24, 2026, in Deutsches Ärzteblatt International, which examined more than 70,000 admissions and found a 5.6 percent increase among adults and 14.9 percent among adolescents after the Cannabis Act took effect, with intoxication admissions up 37.1 percent and cannabis-induced psychosis diagnoses up 16.7 percent, Hanf Magazin reported. The outlet noted the study's authors were more cautious than the political use of their findings suggests, since the design cannot establish causality, may reflect increased screening for cannabis use amid heightened public debate, and does not distinguish between medically prescribed cannabis and cannabis obtained through other channels.

An Industry Built on the Model Now Targeted

The scale of the telemedicine-and-mail-delivery model that the draft bill would dismantle is illustrated by a transaction disclosed separately. Red White & Bloom Brands announced September 11 that it closed a deal giving it a controlling interest in HEAL Europe Holdings, which includes Germany's Grünhorn group of companies. According to the company's press release, Grünhorn fulfilled approximately 290,000 medical cannabis prescriptions in the twelve months ended July 2026, and the broader European platform dispensed or distributed more than 12 tonnes of medical cannabis in that period — output built substantially on online pharmacy and digital patient-access operations, the release said.

Red White & Bloom's release also cited industry data showing German medical cannabis imports rose from about 73 tonnes in 2024 to roughly 205 tonnes in 2025, a 176 percent year-over-year increase, and that pharmacy-based sales surpassed €1 billion in 2025. Those figures, drawn from the company's own cited industry data, describe growth trends consistent with the trajectory Linnemann's ministry says is now approaching 300 tons, though the two figures are not directly comparable given differing time frames and sourcing.

What to Watch

Our database of related coverage shows this push follows a summer measure, noted by Hanf Magazin, granting reimbursement priority to finished cannabis pharmaceutical products over flower — a pairing that, if the draft bill also advances, would push flower prescribing toward a secondary role gated by doctors and pharmacies rather than telemedicine platforms. Hanf Magazin cautioned that implementation details will determine the real-world effect: a mandatory in-person visit could restrict access where prescribing physicians are scarce, and a mail-order ban would particularly affect patients with limited mobility or without a local pharmacy offering cannabis flower. Whether the bill receives a parliamentary vote, and on what timeline, remains unclear based on available reporting.