Cannabis in Peru: What Prevents Treatment from Reaching Patients?

Cannabis in Peru - On paper, the story looks like progress. In real life, however, there is a gap between what the law promises and what reaches the hands of those in need. In the story of cannabis in Peru, a new study shows that regulation has expanded, but access to medicinal products continues to face obstacles.

Cannabis in Peru: What Changed in the Regulations?

Peru regulated the medicinal and therapeutic use of cannabis in 2017. Since then, the country expanded rules for research, production, import, commercialization, and, subsequently, artisanal associative production.

The regulations currently in force were approved in 2023 by Supreme Decree No. 004-2023-SA. The legislation also provides for associative cultivation for medicinal and therapeutic purposes.

For patients using cannabis in Peru, however, having legislation in place does not necessarily mean finding the product available.

It is precisely this gap that stands out in a study published by the Dirección General de Medicamentos, Insumos y Drogas (DIGEMID) itself in the Revista Ciencia, Política y Regulación Farmacéutica.

Between 2019 and 2025, 79 licenses related to the import, commercialization, or production of medical cannabis were granted. During the same period, 37 products received sanitary registration.

Yet there is a key detail: only 12 of these 37 products recorded actual imports.

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Medical Cannabis in Peru: Where Is the Bottleneck?

The study points out that 67.6% of products with sanitary registration showed no record of entry into the country during the analyzed period.

In other words, a product could be authorized by health authorities, but that did not mean it was actually available to those who needed it.

The research describes the scenario as an initial expansion of the formal market followed by operational retraction, creating a gap between regulatory authorization and effective availability.

This finding helps explain why discussions about access do not end once a product receives authorization.

To reach the patient, different stages must function in an integrated manner:

• sanitary registration;
• import or production;
• distribution;
• commercialization;
• availability in authorized establishments;
• medical prescription and follow-up.

When one of these stages fails, regulations may exist on paper without producing the same impact on patients' daily lives.

What Do the Numbers Reveal About the Market?

The DIGEMID survey identified 172 actual import operations between 2019 and 2025, totaling 73,322.1 kg of cannabis-derived products.

The vast majority of imports consisted of finished products, accounting for 96.6% of the volume. Colombia and the United States represented 99.8% of the import origins.

Another figure stands out: among the 37 registered products, 23 remained active by the end of 2025, while the rest had been canceled or had expired.

The predominant pharmaceutical form was oral solution, present in 67.6% of registrations. Among the products that were actually imported and held sanitary registration, epilepsy or seizures appeared as the indication or recommended use in nine cases.

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How Do Patients Access Medical Cannabis in Peru?

According to the Peruvian Ministry of Health, legally authorized products include medications or pharmaceutical products with valid sanitary registration, products with exceptional import authorization for individual treatments, and individualized pharmaceutical preparations compounded upon prescription.

Patients using cannabis in Peru must also be enrolled in the Registro Nacional de Pacientes Usuarios de Cannabis y sus Derivados para Uso Medicinal e Terapéutico (RENPUC), hold a medical prescription, and visit authorized establishments.

DIGEMID maintains a registry of licensed establishments authorized to import and commercialize medical cannabis-derived products.

The Ministry of Health itself recommends that cannabis products in Peru be purchased exclusively from authorized pharmacies and boticas, warning against purchases via the internet or social media. It also emphasizes that use must take place under medical supervision.

Regulating Is Not the Same as Ensuring Access

The data from Peru raises a question that extends far beyond the country's borders: what happens after a therapy is legalized?

The study does not determine how many people need cannabis in Peru, how many effectively manage to start or maintain their treatments, or how many turn to informal channels.

However, the figures reveal a tangible challenge: a regulatory structure exists, but a significant portion of authorized products never reaches the market.

It is in this gap between the law and real life that access still needs to advance.