Israel Panel Urges End to Smoked Medical Cannabis Within 3 Years

The committee, chaired by Dr. Gilad Bodenheimer, head of the ministry's mental health division, was set up to reassess the medical cannabis model. Its report lands on one of the world's largest programs: about 140,000 Israelis hold medical cannabis licences, compared with some 33,000 in 2019, according to the Times of Israel.

What the panel recommends

• End smoking as a mode of administration within three years; new patients start on extracts or precision inhalers. Leniency for patients over 75 and the terminally ill, according to ynet and the Jerusalem Post.
• Move diagnosis approval, monitoring and dispensing to the health funds, which would get about a year to prepare (Jerusalem Post).
• Start with low doses and lower THC relative to CBD.
• Approve cannabis for PTSD only in severe distress and alongside proven treatment such as psychotherapy.
• Require a meeting with a physician to continue prescriptions beyond six months.

Why it matters to patients

Flower dominates Israeli dispensing, so a smoking phase-out would change what most patients buy at the pharmacy. Bodenheimer told reporters that the public widely sees cannabis as a cure-all, which he said it is not, and cited an addiction risk above 20% even among medical users.

What happens next

The recommendations are not immediately binding and still need to be adopted and turned into procedures; we found no report of adoption by late September 2026, so the April 2024 prescription and licence rules should still apply. How the current system works is explained in our guide to prescriptions and Yakar licences; authorized pharmacies are listed on the Israel hub.