IDPH Position Statement on CBD Product Availability in Iowa - Update

The Department of Public Health (Department) has received a number of inquiries about the legality of CBD products currently sold in the state of Iowa. It is the position of the Department that CBD products are not legal in the state of Iowa, with the following four exceptions:

1. The following appropriately prescribed, FDA-approved drugs: Marinol, Syndros, Cesamet

2. Epidiolex, produced by GW Pharmaceuticals, which has been approved by the FDA but is awaiting action by the Drug Enforcement Administration of the Department of Justice

3. Sativex, produced by GW Pharmaceuticals, as part of a FDA-approved clinical trial

4. Products produced and approved pursuant to Iowa Code chapter 124E, the Medical Cannabidiol Act, that contain less than 3% tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and are in a form recommended by the Medical Cannabidiol Board, approved by the Board of Medicine, and adopted by the Department pursuant to administrative rule (see 641—154.14(124E) for the approved forms).

Products manufactured in the state under the provisions of Iowa Code chapter 124E will be available at Department-licensed dispensaries only, starting in late 2018.

The Department’s authority under Iowa Code chapter 124E does not extend to regulation of the sale or use of the types of CBD products that may be currently available at retailers throughout the state. Consumers of these products should be aware that these products have not been approved for use under either a federal or state of Iowa regulatory program. Agencies with enforcement authority in this area include the federal Drug Enforcement Administration, the federal Food and Drug Administration, county attorneys and law enforcement agencies.

It is the opinion of IDPH, with input from the Attorney General's office, that any CBD product not manufactured by our licensed manufacturers and sold at our licensed dispensaries is illegal (unless the product has been approved by the FDA). The above statement clarifies that. 

CBD is itself a Schedule 1 substance regardless of the amount of THC present. Some states allow CBD products to be manufactured, either under the Farm Bill or under state-passed legislation, but those products become illegal if they are shipped out of the state in which they were made. The producers of these products like to say that the products are legal in all 50 states as long as the level of THC is below 0.3%. There is no legal basis for this. The Farm Bill allows for growth of industrial hemp (with less than 0.3% THC) in those states that follow those provisions of the Farm Bill (Iowa has not accepted the terms of the Bill that allow for growth of industrial hemp), but again, any CBD extracted from industrial hemp may not be shipped out of those states. 

One note - the Farm Bill has expired and is being worked on in Congress. The new bill has an amendment to allow for over-the-counter production of CBD from hemp. If the bill is reauthorized with that amendment, the situation will change.

For additional information, please contact: Sarah Reisetter, IDPH Deputy Director, sarah.reisetter@idph.iowa.gov, 515-201-0926.