House-Approved Veterans Affairs Budget Bill Ends Prohibition on Medical Cannabis Recommendations 

An amendment in the House-approved budget bill for the Department of
Veterans Affairs (VA) would, for the first time, allow VA doctors to
recommend medical cannabis to patients in states where it is legal, Stars
and Stripes reports. Currently, VA doctors are banned from even discussing
medical cannabis with their patients due to federal prohibition.

Another amendment in the proposal would allow the VA to plan for
psychedelic therapies as future treatment options, ordering the agency to
recommend changes to its infrastructure to include “approved” psychedelic
therapies in the delivery of future medical services.

The psychedelics amendment was pitched by Rep. Jack Bregman (R-MI), a
retired Marine Corps lieutenant general who served from 1969 to 2009, who
told Stars and Stripes he supports “innovative therapies that show promise
for treating the invisible wounds of war.”

The amendment to allow veterans to participate in state-approved medical
cannabis programs was introduced by Rep. Brian Mast (R-FL), a medically
retired Army veteran who served for more than 12 years as a bomb disposal
expert, who told Stars and Stripes the proposal is “common-sense
legislation.”

“Something like 35 states have approved medical marijuana. If this can help
veterans recovering from injuries stay off prescription narcotics, it will
be a godsend.” — Mast to Stars and Stripes

The legislation would also prohibit the VA from enforcing a regulation that
bans its clinicians from completing paperwork or issuing recommendations
for veterans to participate in state-approved cannabis programs.

The $453 billion spending bill for fiscal year 2026 was passed by the House
last month. The legislation is expected to be reviewed this month by the
Senate Appropriations Committee.