Doctors in Australia are apparently operating under the belief that if a little THC is good, a lot must be better. A new review from Monash University has found that medicinal cannabis products being prescribed Down Under contain up to four times the concentration of THC tested in clinical trials. Because why let evidence get in the way of a good time?

THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in cannabis, has no upper limit in Australian medicinal products. Category 5 offerings - dried herb and concentrated extracts - range from 13% to 88% THC. For context, that's enough to send even Snoop Dogg into a existential crisis. Of over 1,000 available products, only two have been pre-market evaluated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) for quality, safety, and efficacy. The rest? It's a trust fall with Big Weed.

Prof Suzanne Nielsen from the Monash Addiction Research Centre, co-author of the study published in Drug and Alcohol Review, noted a “real mismatch” between the evidence (which tops out at 22% THC) and what's being prescribed. She suggests the TGA consider capping THC at naturally occurring plant levels (about 35%) or even at 22% - the highest concentration tested in trials. Also, health warnings and better labelling might be nice, she added, because apparently consumers are flying blind.

According to TGA data, most prescriptions are for chronic pain and anxiety, with category 5 products making up half of approvals. This despite research showing medicinal cannabis is no more effective than placebo for anxiety, per Dr Jack Wilson at the University of Sydney. For chronic pain, a 2018 review found only low-quality evidence of small reductions. But hey, placebo effect works too, right?

Prescribing has shifted from oral oils to high-THC smoked or vaporized dried flower - a pivot that Nielsen says “doesn’t really match where the evidence is for what works.” The TGA reported 27 adverse events in 2026 so far, while an analysis of 614 reports from mid-2022 to mid-2025 found half were linked to category 5 products, including psychosis, cannabis hyperemesis syndrome (fancy for vomiting endlessly), and suicidal behaviour.

A 2025 review by the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra) flagged concerns that “profits are being prioritised over patient safety,” noting some practitioners issued over 10,000 high-strength prescriptions in six months, with consultations lasting seconds. Telehealth clinics and direct-to-consumer marketing aren't helping. Dr Michael Wright, president of the Royal Australian College of General Practitioners, agrees: “There’s no clinical need for THC concentrations to be this high.” He calls for a product category review, citing rising psychosis cases at hospitals.

In summary: Australia's medicinal cannabis market is a wild west where profits trump evidence, patients are guinea pigs, and your next weed prescription might come from a doctor who spent less time on your case than you do choosing a Netflix show.