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August 7, 2026
Calls for a targeted fix that closes the synthetic-THC loophole without eliminating access to full-spectrum, low-THC CBD
WASHINGTON – The Coalition for Access Now – the leading advocate for ensuring access to quality and consistent Cannabidiol (CBD) products for mothers, caregivers, veterans, athletes, and more who rely on CBD – is urging the Senate to reject an amendment from Senator Ted Budd that would block a planned delay of the federal hemp ban. If the amendment succeeds, the ban would take effect in November as originally scheduled under the 2025 spending bill, sweeping up the non-intoxicating, full-spectrum CBD products that millions of Americans use daily, along with the intoxicating synthetic products it was meant to target.
“The pending ban would include full-spectrum, low THC, high CBD therapeutic products that mothers with children with epilepsy, seniors, veterans and others rely upon as a safe, effective, low-cost alternative to expensive and sometimes risky pharmaceuticals,” said Paige Figi, Executive Director of Coalition for Access Now. “These are the products Congress intended to legalize in the 2018 Farm Bill, and that 45 million Americans rely upon daily. Maintaining the ban on high THC hemp products while preserving therapeutic, low THC, full spectrum CBD products is common sense.”
The underlying provision was authored by then-Senator Mitch McConnell and included in the 2025 spending bill to crack down on synthetic and intoxicating hemp-derived products, such as delta-8 and delta-9 THC compounds, that have been marketed deceptively as CBD. The Coalition supports that goal, but says the provision's language is too broad: as written, it would also outlaw the low-THC, full-spectrum CBD products Congress explicitly legalized under the 2018 Farm Bill.
"Full-spectrum CBD is the only thing that helps my daughter's seizures, and without access to it we would have no viable treatment options," said Lisa Smith, mother of Haley, who once endured dozens of seizures per month from Dravet syndrome but is now nearly seizure-free with full-spectrum CBD treatment. "Before we found full-spectrum CBD, we tried medicine after medicine, and nothing worked. Now Haley is nearly seizure-free. If this ban takes effect in November, families like mine will lose access to the one treatment that actually works, and we'll have nowhere else to turn. Lawmakers need to understand this isn't a luxury product for us — it's a lifeline."
Rather than allowing the ban to take effect as written in November, the Coalition is calling for a targeted, short-term fix: immediately banning synthetic and intoxicating high-THC hemp products while preserving access to low-THC, full-spectrum CBD, and giving Congress until December to write a permanent, more precisely tailored solution. This approach would deliver on McConnell's original intent, closing the loophole that let intoxicating products masquerade as CBD, without the collateral damage of stripping legitimate, non-intoxicating therapeutics off the market.
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About the Coalition for Access Now
In 2014, Paige founded the Coalition for Access Now, a 501(c)4, to help other families in similar circumstances provide relief to their children. The work of Paige and the mothers in the Coalition for Access Now led to the passage of Cannabidiol (CBD) access laws in all 50 states. The Coalition convenes medical providers, veterans, athletes, and businesses to drive public awareness and achievable solutions for ensuring access to quality and consistent CBD products. To learn more: www.CoalitionForAccess.org
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