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Florida medical marijuana officials are actively revoking registrations of patients and caregivers with drug-related criminal records under provisions in budget legislation signed by Governor Ron DeSantis earlier in 2025, according to reporting by Marijuana Moment.
Bobbie Smith, director of the Florida Office of Medical Marijuana Use (OMMU), informed lawmakers on October 15, 2025, that regulators have already banned individuals from the medical cannabis program under the new policy. "OMMU has identified 20 individuals that meet the new requirement for revocation, and there's roughly 140 that we're still monitoring as they wait make their way through the criminal justice system," Smith stated at a House Health Professions & Programs Subcommittee hearing.
The policy stems from provisions in broad budget legislation directing the state Department of Health to cancel registrations of medical marijuana patients and caregivers convicted of or pleading guilty or no contest to criminal drug charges.
Under the law, authorities must revoke registrations if patients or caregivers "was convicted of, or pled guilty or nolo contendre to, regardless of adjudication, a violation [of state drug law] if such violation was for trafficking in, the sale, manufacture, or delivery of, or possession with intent to sell, manufacture, or deliver a controlled substance."
The enacted version focuses specifically on production and distribution activities. It does not contain earlier provisions from prior versions that would have revoked registrations for individuals who merely purchased illegal drugs, including more than 10 grams of marijuana for personal use.
The measure provides that patient or caregiver registrations will be immediately suspended upon being charged with covered state drug crimes. Suspensions remain in place until criminal cases reach final disposition. Department of Health officials have authority to reinstate registrations, revoke them entirely, or extend suspensions as needed.
The legislation clarifies that patients and caregivers have a process to request registration reinstatement. This involves submitting new applications "accompanied by a notarized attestation by the applicant that he or she has completed all the terms of incarceration, probation, community control, or supervision related to the offense."
The revised bill's plain language does not clearly specify whether it impacts only future criminal cases involving medical marijuana patients and caregivers or whether the Department of Health must review existing program registrants' records and potentially revoke registrations of an undetermined number of Floridians with past drug convictions.
Questions remain about how far back the Department of Health will review criminal records and whether convictions occurring before medical marijuana program participation will trigger revocations. The scope of retroactive enforcement could significantly affect the number of patients losing access.
Florida lawmakers defeated several proposals to expand the medical cannabis program during the 2025 regular legislative session. Rejected measures included allowing home cultivation, adding new qualifying conditions, protecting employment and parental rights of patients, and permitting military veterans to register without fees.
The rejection of these expansion proposals occurred as the state simultaneously implemented restrictions removing some existing patients from the program based on criminal history. The contrasting approaches reflect ongoing policy tensions between expanding medical access and imposing criminal justice-based limitations.
Advocates are working on a new cannabis initiative for Florida's 2026 ballot. As of summer 2025, the renewed legalization campaign has collected more than 75 percent of required signatures to place the marijuana measure before voters, according to state officials.
Smart & Safe Florida, the campaign that received tens of millions of dollars from cannabis industry stakeholders during the last election cycle—principally from multi-state operator Trulieve—has incorporated changes into the new version responding to criticism opponents raised during the 2024 push.
The revised proposal specifically states that "smoking and vaping of marijuana in any public place is prohibited." Another section asserts that the legislature would need to approve rules dealing with "regulation of the time, place, and manner of the public consumption of marijuana."
Governor DeSantis recently acknowledged in a speech that marijuana legalization remains popular with voters despite his opposition. He campaigned to defeat a reform initiative on the state's 2024 ballot.
DeSantis stated in February that the newest proposal is in "big time trouble" with the state Supreme Court, predicting it will be blocked from going before voters in 2026. Last year, the governor accurately predicted that the 2024 cannabis measure would survive a legal challenge from the state attorney general. His reasoning for expecting a different outcome for the 2026 version remains unclear.
A poll released in February 2025 showed overwhelming bipartisan voter support for marijuana reform, with 67 percent of Florida voters backing legalization, including 82 percent of Democrats, 66 percent of independents, and 55 percent of Republicans.
However, results conflict with another recent poll from the Florida Chamber of Commerce, a proactive legalization opponent, that found majority support among likely voters at 53 percent—below the 60 percent requirement for constitutional amendments in Florida.
Another recent poll of Florida Republican voters showed only 40 percent of that demographic would vote in favor of the legalization proposal, suggesting potential challenges reaching the 60 percent threshold despite overall majority support.
DeSantis signed GOP-led legislation in June 2025 imposing significant restrictions on the ability to place initiatives on the ballot—a plan that could impair efforts to let voters decide on marijuana legalization in 2026. The timing of these restrictions coincides with the legalization campaign's signature gathering efforts.
The new ballot access requirements create additional hurdles for citizen initiatives beyond the signature collection and 60 percent approval thresholds already in place. How these restrictions will affect the 2026 cannabis initiative remains to be determined as the campaign continues gathering signatures.
A state senator recently filed a pair of bills for the 2026 legislative session that would provide employment and parental rights protections for registered medical marijuana patients. These proposals address issues that failed to advance during the 2025 session.
Whether these protections will gain traction in 2026 remains uncertain, particularly as the state simultaneously implements policies removing some patients from the medical marijuana program based on criminal convictions.
This article reports on developments originally covered by Marijuana Moment.
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