When medical cannabis was rescheduled in 2018 to allow specialist prescribing, many patients were left behind without NHS access. Families call them the “Forgotten Children of 2018”. Many rely on this treatment to control life-threatening conditions but must pay privately or go without.

We call on the Government to fund the observational trial and access so patients can receive treatment while evidence is gathered. In 2019, the Health and Social Care Committee and NHS England supported alternative evidence pathways for patients already receiving treatment who cannot safely stop treatment to enter randomised controlled trials. Without funding, families face high costs or risk losing treatment, and opportunities to gather vital data are lost.