Virginia Senators Approve Bill To Let Patients Access Medical Marijuana In Hospitals After Federal Rescheduling

Virginia lawmakers have approved a bill to allow qualifying patients to access medical marijuana in hospitals—but only if the federal government moves forward with a pending plan to reschedule cannabis.

The Senate Education and Health Subcommittee on Health voted 4-0 on Tuesday to advance the legislation from Sen. Barbara Favola (D). The proposal would build upon existing state statute protecting health professionals at hospices and nursing facilities that assist terminally ill patients in utilizing medical cannabis treatment.

Those protections would be expanded to hospital workers under the substitute version of the bill that was approved by the subcommittee. As originally introduced, the measure would have simply directed the state the Department of Health to form a working group to explore the reform, but its scope was expanded prior to the vote.

“What this bill does is it just allows a hospital to use medical cannabis under a prescription,” the sponsor of the Virginia measure said ahead of Tuesday’s vote. “Medical cannabis is currently available and can be used in a nursing home, a hospice, a hospice facility or assisted living facility. We are just adding hospitals to the current statute.”

Unlike other states where similar laws are in place or being considered this session—a policy known as “Ryan’s law,” named after a young medical marijuana patient in California who passed away—the Virginia bill would only extend the protections to hospital settings if cannabis is federally rescheduled.

President Donald Trump signed an executive order in December directing the attorney general to expeditiously move marijuana from Schedule I to Schedule III of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), but that’s yet to materialize.

Meanwhile in Virginia, lawmakers are also considering more robust reforms to the state’s marijuana laws, including proposals to legalize cannabis sales and provide pathways for resentencing for those with prior cannabis convictions.

A recent poll found that lawmakers seeking to allow commercial marijuana sales have the support of a majority of registered voters.

The survey results come as committees in the Virginia House of Delegates and Senate have recently approved bills to legalize and regulate the adult-use cannabis market.

While there are some differences between the chambers’ bills, the overall proposals largely align with recommendations released last month by the legislature’s Joint Commission to Oversee the Transition of the Commonwealth into a Cannabis Retail Market.

Since legalizing cannabis possession and home cultivation in 2021, Virginia lawmakers have worked to establish a commercial marijuana market—only to have those efforts consistently stalled under former Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R), who twice vetoed measures to enact it that were sent to his desk by the legislature.

Newly sworn-in Gov. Abigail Spanberger (D) supports legalizing adult-use marijuana sales.

—Marijuana Moment is tracking hundreds of cannabis, psychedelics and drug policy bills in state legislatures and Congress this year. Patreon supporters pledging at least $25/month get access to our interactive maps, charts and hearing calendar so they don’t miss any developments.

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Meanwhile, Virginia lawmakers have filed other marijuana-related legislation for the 2026 session, including a proposal to provide resentencing relief for people convicted of past cannabis crimes.

Separately, the Virginia Department of Labor and Industry recently published a new outlining workplace protections for cannabis consumers.