{"id":32773,"date":"2026-08-08T16:15:43","date_gmt":"2026-08-08T11:15:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=32773"},"modified":"2026-08-08T16:15:43","modified_gmt":"2026-08-08T11:15:43","slug":"mehmet-oz-weighs-in-on-hemp-fight-urges-senators-to-support-delay-of-thc-ban","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=32773","title":{"rendered":"Mehmet Oz weighs in on hemp fight, urges senators to support delay of THC ban"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<br \/><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/06\/AP26153622706056-e1780436827601.jpg?w=900\" \/><\/p>\n<div>\n<p>\n        <iframe id=\"instaread_iframe\" width=\"100%\" height=\"100%\" scrolling=\"no\" frameborder=\"0\" loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Audio Article\" style=\"display:block\" data-pin-nopin=\"true\"><\/iframe>\n    <\/p>\n<p><\/instaread-player><\/p>\n<p>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 <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/healthcare\/6009069-senate-funding-bill-seeks-hemp-thc-ban-delay\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/healthcare\/6009069-senate-funding-bill-seeks-hemp-thc-ban-delay\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">most hemp-derived products<\/a> to take effect in November.<\/p>\n<p>In a Friday letter, Oz noted he had \u201cgrave concerns\u201d about <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/senate\/6014671-vance-gop-hemp-thc-ban-funding-bill\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/senate\/6014671-vance-gop-hemp-thc-ban-funding-bill\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">the amendment<\/a> from Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.), which would strip from a <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/senate\/6012731-senate-gop-internal-squabbles\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/senate\/6012731-senate-gop-internal-squabbles\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">government funding bill<\/a> a one-month delay of the ban.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr1_ab\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>\u201cPassage 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,\u201d the CMS chief wrote.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The Trump administration earlier this year <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/business\/5661232-hemp-industry-cbd-trump-order-rescheduling-marijuana\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/business\/5661232-hemp-industry-cbd-trump-order-rescheduling-marijuana\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">launched a pilot program<\/a> that would allow Medicare providers participating in select programs to offer eligible hemp products to eligible beneficiaries.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>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. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>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.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>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. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Oz in the letter said passage of the amendment would \u201crip away from millions of seniors and disabled Americans the opportunity to benefit from these new programs.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr2_ab\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>The underlying spending bill would also delay the restrictions on <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/healthcare\/5912845-hemp-derived-intoxicants-congress\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/healthcare\/5912845-hemp-derived-intoxicants-congress\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">intoxicating hemp products<\/a> enacted last year until December, though cannabinoids that cannot naturally be produced by the cannabis plant <a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/healthcare\/5605017-hemp-industry-regulations-future\/\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/policy\/healthcare\/5605017-hemp-industry-regulations-future\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">would still lose<\/a> their federal hemp status on Nov. 12.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>Hemp industry stakeholders say the extra month will give them additional time to convince lawmakers that regulation, not prohibition, is the best path forward.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The provision was inserted into the bill at the behest of the White House, though it has bipartisan backing. Budd\u2019s amendment would strip that delay from the bill. \u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr3_ab\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>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.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The senators say they are trying to protect children from illicit products that are intentionally marketed to children. \u00a0<\/p>\n<p>The products are labeled as hemp but contain extremely high levels of synthetic THC, the psychedelic compound in marijuana responsible for a high.\u00a0 \u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"ad-unit ad-unit--mr4_ab\">\n<\/aside>\n<p>Oz said the administration shares the same goals and is \u201cfocused on preventing dangerous products from reaching Americans.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou 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,\u201d he wrote.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p>Copyright 2026 Nexstar Media Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.<\/p>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>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 \u201cgrave concerns\u201d about the amendment from Sen. Ted Budd (R-N.C.),&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32774,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thehill.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2026\/06\/AP26153622706056-e1780436827601.jpg?w=1280","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-32773","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-political-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32773","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=32773"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32773\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/32774"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=32773"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=32773"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=32773"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}