April 12, 2019

Re: CBD Sales in Pharmacies

Dear Licensee:

On June 25, 2018, the West Virginia Board of Pharmacy ("the Board") voted to prohibit the sale of non-FDA approved cannabidiol ("CBD") products in the pharmacy setting. After further consideration of both state and federal regulations regarding these products, the Board is withdrawing that prohibition, effective immediately.

While the Board no longer specifically prohibits these sales of CBD products in its licensed pharmacies, it offers no opinion on the legality of such sales under federal law. Additionally, selling or possessing CBD products that contain THC or other controlled substances could be violations of both state and federal laws. Recent testing of retail CBD oil samples from across West Virginia, indicated that over a third of the samples tested contained Delta 9 THC, which is a Schedule I controlled substance. Therefore, it is up to each pharmacy to determine whether they will sell CBD products, and to carefully consider the impact that any state and federal regulations may have on such sales. This notification should not be construed as a defense to prosecution for any criminal charges related to the sale or possession of these CBD products.

The Board encourages pharmacies electing to sell CBD products to stay aware of U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) alerts and warning letters issued regarding CBD containing products. FDA information regarding these products can be found at https://www.fda.gov/NewsEvents/PublicHealthFocus/ucm421168.htm.  

Sincerely,

Michael L. Goff

Executive Director & CSMP Administrator