VA budget bill

WASHINGTON — Doctors at the Department of Veterans Affairs for the first time would be allowed to recommend cannabis to patients in states where it is legal, according to an amendment in the House-approved VA budget bill for fiscal 2026.

While VA doctors cannot prescribe cannabis, which is banned under federal law, a measure in the Military Construction, Veterans Affairs and Related Agencies Appropriations Act would let them discuss it as an alternative health care treatment in states that have legalized medical marijuana.

The amendment comes from the Veterans Equal Access Act, led by Rep. Brian Mast, R.-Fla., a medically retired Army veteran who served for more than 12 years as a bomb disposal expert.

There also is a second amendment included in the House-approved VA spending bill that supports VA planning for psychedelic assisted therapy as a future treatment option for veterans. That amendment is led by Rep. Bergman, R-Mich., a retired Marine Corps lieutenant general.

The legislation orders the VA to recommend changes needed in its health care infrastructure to include “approved” psychedelic therapies in the delivery of medical services.

The fiscal 2026 bill passed the House in June with more than 30 amendments.

The Senate Appropriations Committee is expected to review the legislation after the July 4th weekend. Fiscal 2026 begins Oct. 1.

Supporters said both amendments provide a framework for the VA to plan for and consider alternative treatments for patients when traditional pharmaceuticals are ineffective.

Cannabis and psychedelic drugs are illegal under federal law, though most states permit marijuana for medical or recreational use.

Bergman, who served from 1969 to 2009, said he supports “innovative therapies that show promise for treating the invisible wounds of war.”

“This line of therapeutics has tremendous advantage, if given in a clinical setting. And we are working very hard to make sure that that happens within 12 months,” said Robert F. Kennedy Jr., secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Kennedy spoke at a June hearing of the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s subpanel on health. He was responding to questions from Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, a medically retired Navy SEAL, about the potential use of psychedelic-assisted therapy at the VA for trauma-related disorders.

“We are launching clinical trials at [the Food and Drug Administration], and there are 11 clinical trials at VA,” Kennedy said. “We need to make sure the science on this is solid, particularly for our retired military service members. The preliminary results are very encouraging. There are people who badly need therapy, and nothing else works for them.”

The Veterans Equal Access Act would prohibit the VA from interfering with a veteran’s participation in a medical marijuana program in states where cannabis use is legal.

The legislation allows VA doctors to provide recommendations for medical marijuana to their VA patients. The bill was included as an amendment on the $453 billion VA spending bill approved by the House last month.

“This is common-sense legislation,” said Mast, who served from 2000 to 2011. “Something like 35 states have approved medical marijuana. If this can help veterans recovering from injuries stay off prescription narcotics, it will be a godsend.”

The legislation also stops the VA from using funds to enforce “Veterans Health Directive 1315,” a VA regulation that forbids VA clinicians from completing paperwork or issuing recommendations for veterans to participate in state-approved cannabis programs.

“I sympathize with the struggles of veterans who need an alternative to prescription narcotics,” said Mast, a staff sergeant who lost both legs in a roadside explosion in Afghanistan in 2010.

Mast said he received a “laundry list” of narcotics during his own recovery from catastrophic combat injuries.

“These are not pleasant drugs,” he said. “If veterans can benefit from a non-narcotic like medical marijuana, we are doing a great service for them.”