Gov. Tate Reeves signed Senate Bill 2888 on April 8, establishing the Mississippi Cannabis Research Program at the University of Mississippi to research the effects of medical cannabis on patients.
The bill went into effect on July 1, and the university distributed a press release detailing the program on Tuesday, Sept. 3. Restricted use of cannabis for medicinal purposes became legal in Mississippi in 2022.
The new program will operate under the National Center for Cannabis Research and Education (NCCRE) at the School of Pharmacy. In partnership with the Mississippi Department of Health Medical Cannabis Program, the NCCRE was created to conduct research on medical cannabis and products as well as its effects on patients.
“We know through a lot of clinical research that has been done on pharmaceutical-grade products that it can have beneficial effects, so we’re trying to figure out, specifically for our state and patients in our state, how these different products are affecting the patients,” Robert Welch, the director of the National Center for Cannabis Research and Education, said. “They foresaw that there’s going to be a need for this center, and sure enough they created this research program based around our center to conduct all of this work.”
The bill establishes a Medical Research Advisory Board to oversee medical cannabis research and ensure compliance with regulatory standards. The advisory committee will consist of 11 members appointed by the governor, lieutenant governor and speaker of the house.
“The National Center for Cannabis Research and Education will help to ensure that Mississippi remains at the forefront of natural products research,” Sen. Nicole Akins Boyd, a sponsor of the bill, said. “I am proud of the University of Mississippi for continuing to be a national leader in research excellence.”
According to the NCCRE website, the program will research safety, efficiency and potential therapeutic benefits of medical cannabis for patients. One of the areas of research at the NCCRE is real-world evidence studies. The center is collecting and analyzing patient outcomes data and the effects of the products sold through the Mississippi Medical Cannabis Program.
“We’re going to get (patient outcome) data, analyze it and hopefully be able to clarify for the legislature, public, patients and healthcare community how well these products are working,” Welch said. “That will hopefully bring a lot of clarity to how these patients are experiencing these products out there in the real world.”
The center is also conducting drug-to-drug interaction studies to determine how cannabinoid products interact with prescription drugs or other types of drugs.
The NCCRE is also applying for federal grants to determine various health effects of cannabinoids; they are also aiming to fulfill a need for cannabis research and amplify the potential of cannabis products.
“We’re leveraging our many years of cannabis expertise to amplify the potential for these products for patients,” Welch said. “We’re hoping to make a national impact as well through all of this information.”
