Patients Seeking CBD Treatment Met With High Prices and Questionable Quality
The old adage “You get what you pay for” does not always apply to the rapidly expanding CBD industry
Peer-reviewed science is crucial in the development of new medical treatments, but the real power behind the worldwide CBD movement today are the anecdotal successes that people are witnessing in their friends, family members, and themselves from this multipurpose natural healer.
So as more of those success stories swirl around our society, of course, more people become interested in seeing what all the hype is about, and if it can help them or someone that they know.
Medicinal CBD can be derived from either specially bred cannabis plants, or from hemp plants. As such, the US Federal Government has been consistently unclear as to how they plan to treat CBD.
It is not currently listed as a Schedule I drug under the Controlled Substances Act, but the DEA still treats it like cannabis in many cases.
In the meantime, hemp-derived CBD products like balms, salves, tinctures, edibles, and even dabs and buds have been popping up not just in medical marijuana dispensaries, but in head shops and smoke shops and even mainstream outlets like Whole Foods in all 50 states.
Hell, the local pool supply store here has a clearly homemade “Miracle Healing Balm” at the point of purchase – we know what’s in there… (Hint: it ain’t chlorine!)
For those seeking CBD as a necessary medical treatment option, the sheer number of options is often overwhelming…as are the price tags on most of those products.
Leafly recently compared prices on 13 different CBD-based companies ranging from $0.05/mg to $0.60/mg, with the average working out to be roughly $0.17 per milligram of CBD.
Now consider the fact that a top shelf zip of Beard Bros. Pharms Extreme Cream can be purchased at AHHS WeHo for $250 (whatta deal!).
You can get an ounce of Chanel No.5 perfume for $120, or an ounce of gold today for around $1300.
But at an average cost of $0.17/mg, this processed CBD is clocking in at $4,819.33 PER OUNCE.
Compounding the problem is the fact that domestic hemp farming and production is really just being revitalized after decades of unjust illegality. This upstart supply cannot meet the booming demand and so many of these CBD companies are importing hemp powder from places like China.
Since hemp crops absorb any toxins from the soil in which they are grown, having health-conscious sources for production is essential for patients who may have compromised immune systems. There’s no telling what you may be getting from overseas.
An average patient looking to fully supplement their medication intake with CBD can expect to spend hundreds of dollars each month, all too often on a highly unregulated product, with no financial help from their health insurance provider. On the other hand, Rite Aid will take your insurance card and gladly hand you some pharmaceuticals for a fraction of that cost, side effects be damned.
To be fair, until the Feds make a definitive statement regarding the legality of CBD production and distribution, prices are likely to remain high to offset potential risks.
Just this week the Associated Press reported that Texas, the largest state in the nation, is heavily considering a total ban on all CBD products. This issue will not be voted on by the people of Texas, but instead will be decided by one man – Dr. John Hellerstedt, the commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services.
If you are in the CBD business, news like that certainly doesn’t motivate you to lower your prices.
So it remains as with most things in life, you’ve got to be able to trust the source of your CBD products.
Would you like to see sustainably sourced CBD healing products in our online store, available to be shipped legally to all 50 states? Then we need you to join the fight to maintain safe access to CBD for everyone. Contact your local politicians and help spread the word on social media by sharing links like this one. Together, we can be the change.
Read more at Beard Bros Pharms.
