Texas Moving to Ban the Sale of All CBD Products

The Medical Cannabis Association of Texas, (MCAT), is urging the Texas Department of State Health Services, (DSHS), not to take action on their proposal to ban the sales of all CBD oil products sold in the state of Texas without direction from the Texas Legislature.

"DSHS is proposing an inspection protocol that could lead to the removal of all hemp derived CBD products for sale in Texas," said Connor Oakley, Executive Director of MCAT. "This proposal is not necessary. Current law does not allow for the sale of any CBD products that contain levels of the psychoactive component of the cannabis plant, THC that are currently banned by state and federal laws."

However, Oakley says that MCAT is in agreement with DSHS that products labeled as containing CBD oil should be tested to ensure their safety and efficacy.

"Random testing of CBD products sold in other states have shown that many contain no actual CBD oil and some have been found to contain dangerous levels of pesticides and other contaminants," Oakley said. "MCAT is currently working with the Texas Legislature to pass legislation during the upcoming session that will require the testing of these products by independent laboratories. We have made DSHS aware that these efforts are ongoing and that we feel that their agency should not make a decision of this magnitude without direction from the Legislature."

State Representative Joe Moody, (D-El Paso), Chairman of the powerful House Criminal Jurisprudence Committee agreed saying, "Governor Abbott and both chambers of the Legislature joined in bipartisan recognition that cannabis can be medicine when we passed the Compassionate Use Act. While we need oversight and regulation when it comes to any form of medicine, I also believe the Legislature should be the entity to provide that direction. The legislative process gives us the opportunity for public and professional comment at a level and in a format that simply isn't available to our regulatory agencies, which I'd ask to await further direction this coming session before stifling the existing free market."

In the MCAT letter to DSHS stating their opposition to their proposal, Oakley states, "We are in agreement that the State of Texas should enact legislation requiring the testing of CBD Products to ensure the safety and efficacy of those products. However, we strongly oppose your agency's proposal for an across the board ban on the sales of CBD products currently available to patients in Texas. To take this medicine away from those who have found no other effective treatment for their conditions would be a disservice."

"This should most certainly be a legislative matter and more importantly should be based in science and facts. CBD is not intoxicating, has been safely used around the world and there is no known abuse liability. This should be an issue debated by our representatives," stated Chad Sykes, a Director and spokesperson for MCAT and founder of Indoor Harvest Corp, a pending applicant to produce cannabis under the Compassionate Use Program in Texas through its wholly owned subsidiary Alamo CBD.

Dr. Lang Coleman, a clinical neuropsychologist that spent 22 years in U.S. Army Psychiatry, that now serves as CEO of Alamo CBD, also opposes the measure. "Safe tested CBD oil has demonstrated its efficacy in treating a number of illnesses that are common in our Texas population," Coleman said. "Mitch McConnell, the Republican senate majority leader, has proposed legalized hemp in the United States. Texas needs rules in anticipation of more use of CBD products, not to take the completely unnecessary step of blindly banning the product that could very soon be legal federally. Any law that bans rather than regulates, punishes consumers who benefit from this medicine."

The MCAT letter also states that although it is currently a "buyer beware" situation in Texas, many of the CBD products currently available have been tested by independent labs and have been proven to contain the levels of CBD oil stated on the label and deemed safe and effective by medical professionals. The DSHS will be taking public comments on this matter through Monday, April 16, 2018.