Germany, Europe’s largest medical cannabis market, is preparing to shut down the very channel that fuelled its growth. The federal government is moving a reform of the Medical Cannabis Act (MedCanG) that would ban prescriptions issued by telemedicine alone and the mail-order supply of cannabis flower from pharmacies. The text is not law yet, but its shadow is already reshaping strategies across the European value chain.
What exactly changes
The draft approved by the federal cabinet substantially tightens access to cannabis flower:
- An initial prescription may only be issued after in-person contact between doctor and patient: video-consultation-only first prescriptions are over.
- The Versandhandel — mail-order sale of flower through online pharmacies — would be prohibited.
- Delivery by the pharmacy’s own courier is allowed for patients with reduced mobility.
- Remote follow-ups are only valid if an in-person visit took place within the previous four quarters.
The channel that drove imports
The reason for the regulatory turn is in the numbers. In 2025 Germany imported 201,094 kg of medical cannabis flower, with Canada as the main supplier (93,006 kg, close to 46% of the total). Imports grew roughly 176% between 2024 and 2025. Officials attribute much of that jump precisely to the telemedicine and mail-order channel the reform seeks to close, arguing that demand has grown far above statutory-insurance prescriptions.
A text that keeps stalling
Despite the noise, the rule is not in force. The federal cabinet adopted the draft on 8 October 2025 and it passed a first Bundestag reading on 18 December 2025, but it has not advanced to the required second and third readings and remains in the health committee. Within the coalition itself there is disagreement: the SPD publicly defends keeping telemedicine and mail order. Moreover, after the Bundestag the Bundesrat would still have to give its approval. For now, prescribing by telemedicine and shipping by mail remains legal.
What it means for the business
- Telemedicine and distribution platforms: they will have to rethink their patient-access models if Germany locks in the in-person consultation.
- EU-GMP importers and producers: a contraction in German demand would hit volumes across the entire European supply chain.
- Pharmacies: a shift toward in-person dispensing and own-courier logistics instead of postal shipping.
- Investors: German regulatory uncertainty is consolidating as a risk factor to watch in any thesis on the European market.
The episode confirms that the European map moves on national decisions that change from one quarter to the next. Anyone operating in medical cannabis needs to read these moves before they become rules, not after. You can follow the detail in the analysis by Gleiss Lutz and the coverage in Forbes.
Regulation, EU-GMP importing and patient access will be discussed without spin at Spannabis B2B Bilbao 2027 (International Cannabis Business Forum, 11 March 2027, VIP Room of the BEC). It is where producers, laboratories, distribution and investment compare notes on where the market is heading. Book your ticket now or request a B2B table to close deals in Bilbao.