The Texas Department of State Health Services is backing off a plan – for now – to remove CBD products off retail store shelves, the Austin American-Statesman reports. The agency proposed an inspection protocol in April that would have subjected CBD products to confiscation during inspections.
Health regulators are holding off on the action while they consult with other government entities, including law enforcement, on CBD product policy.
“We’re trying to figure out our big picture. We are getting more information to try to decide on a more overarching policy.” – Lara Anton, spokeswomen for the Department of State Health Services, to the Statesman
The agency received about 1,000 comments on the proposed protocol, the bulk of which opposed the action, Anton said, and that people “wanted to be able to continue to buy CBD.” Although she indicated that the comments also made the agency aware just how many products containing CBD were being sold in the state.
“We weren’t aware of how many different products there were and how widely it was being sold. After reviewing the comments, we realized that we needed to gather more information about the use of CBD in other types of products before making any decisions on how to enforce existing laws that apply to foods, drugs and cosmetics.” – Anton to the Statesman
Texas’ medical cannabis law only allows CBD sales and only three dispensaries have been approved to sell the products.