Dr. Oz urges senators to reject Budd hemp amendment

Healthcare Dr. Oz urges senators to reject Budd hemp amendment Comments: by Nathaniel Weixel - 08/07/26 1:42 PM ET Comments: Link copied by Nathaniel Weixel - 08/07/26 1:42 PM ET Comments: Link copied

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Dr. Mehmet Oz, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), is urging senators to not support an amendment that would allow a federal ban on most hemp-derived products to take effect in November.

In a Friday letter, Oz noted he had “grave concerns” about the amendment from Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.), which would strip from a government funding bill a one-month delay of the ban.

“Passage of this amendment would undo significant gains that have been made to make clinically-appropriate full-spectrum hemp-derived CBD accessible to the senior citizens and individuals with disabilities that rely on the Medicare program for their healthcare,” the CMS chief wrote.

The Trump administration earlier this year launched a pilot program that would allow Medicare providers participating in select programs to offer eligible hemp products to eligible beneficiaries.

Participants may provide up to $500 worth of hemp products annually. Medicare itself will not reimburse providers for the products, however, so participating organizations bear the costs.

The administration highlighted the availability of full-spectrum CBD, which contains all of the compounds found in the cannabis plant, including trace amounts of THC that are not enough to produce a psychoactive effect.

But the program encompasses all hemp-derived products containing no more than 0.3 percent delta-9 THC by total weight, the same definition of hemp included in the 2018 farm bill. CMS said it would change the requirements if hemp laws changed.

Oz in the letter said passage of the amendment would “rip away from millions of seniors and disabled Americans the opportunity to benefit from these new programs.”

The underlying spending bill would also delay the restrictions on intoxicating hemp products enacted last year until December, though cannabinoids that cannot naturally be produced by the cannabis plant would still lose their federal hemp status on Nov. 12.

Hemp industry stakeholders say the extra month will give them additional time to convince lawmakers that regulation, not prohibition, is the best path forward.

The provision was inserted into the bill at the behest of the White House, though it has bipartisan backing. Budd’s amendment would strip that delay from the bill.

Budd and other co-sponsors of the amendment are slowing consideration of the spending bill until they can get a vote. There are currently 13 co-sponsors.

The senators say they are trying to protect children from illicit products that are intentionally marketed to children.

The products are labeled as hemp but contain extremely high levels of synthetic THC, the psychedelic compound in marijuana responsible for a high.

Oz said the administration shares the same goals and is “focused on preventing dangerous products from reaching Americans.”

“You each have my commitment to continue to work with you on meeting our shared goals of ensuring patient access and protection of the public health,” he wrote.