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Key Takeaways
- Ryan’s Law Kentucky allows terminally ill patients to use medical cannabis for symptom relief in hospitals, addressing gaps in access.
- The law emerged from Jim Bartell’s fight for his son Ryan, who faced severe sedation from opioids during cancer treatment.
- More than 24,000 Kentuckians have medical cannabis cards, but access in hospitals varies by facility policies.
- The law requires hospitals to permit patient access, while patients or caregivers supply and administer the cannabis.
- Kentucky aims to adopt Ryan’s Law after evaluating barriers, possibly introducing a bill in the 2027 legislative session.
Ryan’s Law requires hospitals and healthcare facilities to allow terminally ill patients to use medical cannabis for symptom relief. First passed in California in 2021, the law has since been adopted in 11 additional states.
On July 16th, Kentucky lawmakers sat before one of the more quietly moving presentations they may hear all session. Jim Bartell, the father behind the national push for Ryan’s Law, took a seat before the state’s Interim Joint Committee on Health Services and told the story of his son Ryan, a former special education teacher in Seattle who was diagnosed with stage four pancreatic cancer on March 1, 2018, and given only weeks to live.
What followed that diagnosis, and the weeks Jim spent fighting for his son’s right to access medical cannabis in a hospital setting, became the foundation for legislation that has now passed in California and 11 other states. Kentucky could soon be next.
The state already has a functioning medical cannabis program. More than 24,000 Kentuckians hold medical cannabis cards as of mid-2026, and Gov. Andy Beshear expanded the list of qualifying conditions in June by adding 15 new health disorders. But having a card doesn’t guarantee access inside a hospital. That gap is exactly what Ryan’s Law is designed to close.
What Is Ryan’s Law and Where Did It Come From?
Ryan’s Law, formally known as the Compassionate Access to Medical Cannabis Act, requires hospitals and qualifying healthcare facilities to allow terminally ill patients to use medical cannabis for symptom management. It does not require hospitals to procure or dispense cannabis, only to permit patients, family members, or caregivers to bring it in and administer it.
Ryan Bartell passed away on April 21, 2018, just seven weeks after receiving his cancer diagnosis, and the law bears his name. During his first hospitalization, doctors placed Ryan on fentanyl, a drug 100 times more powerful than morphine, which sedated him and left him unable to communicate. His family spent three weeks trying to get an exception to the hospital’s internal policy against cannabis. They were denied.
After transferring Ryan to a hospital in Seattle that permitted medical cannabis, the change was immediate. Jim Bartell described what happened after his son received his first dose as a sublingual tincture: “He woke up the next morning, wide awake, pain free. It was a miracle. He immediately got on his phone and started texting his friends, ‘I’m awake, come and see me.’ Those last three weeks, he had 125 visitors.”
Jim Bartell wrote the bill himself. After connecting with a state senator in California, it took three years to get it signed. Governor Newsom approved Senate Bill 311 on September 28, 2021, and it took effect January 1, 2022. In his July 16 testimony, Bartell reported that an oncology medical journal has since published findings on the law’s effectiveness in California. He noted that no one has filed lawsuits and that hospitals have fully cooperated.
What Happened at the Kentucky Committee Hearing?
The hearing before Kentucky’s Interim Joint Committee on Health Services brought together Jim Bartell, Heather Manus (a registered nurse and founder of the Cannabis Nurses Network), and Ken Sobel, a cannabis attorney who helped author the original bill.
Bartell told the committee that 12 states have now adopted Ryan’s Law, with 13 more in the process of introducing it. The remaining eligible states are expected to take it up in 2027. His stated goal is adoption in all 37 medical cannabis states by the end of next year.
He also addressed one of the primary concerns that had previously stalled the law in other states: Medicare and Medicaid reimbursement. “We did get a letter from Medicare and Medicaid CMS saying that they don’t have any regulations prohibiting medical cannabis in hospitals and the hospital would not lose their Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement funding if they did,” Bartell told the committee.
Heather Manus reinforced the nursing community’s perspective: “No patient facing the end of life should be forced to choose between receiving healthcare and accessing a legal therapy that helps relieve their suffering. For many terminally ill patients, medical cannabis can provide meaningful relief from pain, nausea, anxiety, and insomnia, while allowing them to remain present with the people they love.”
Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser (R), co-chair of the Health Committee, responded positively, acknowledging that some Kentucky hospitals may already be cooperating but confirming the committee would research what legislative barriers remain. “We’re going to have to do our homework here, and we will,” she said.
What Are the Key Benefits of Ryan’s Law for Terminally Ill Patients?
The case for Ryan’s Law rests on a straightforward medical reality: opioids like fentanyl and morphine, which are the standard palliative tools in hospitals, carry heavy sedative effects. For patients with a terminal diagnosis and only weeks or months remaining, that sedation comes at a steep cost.
Medical cannabis offers several distinct advantages for terminally ill patients. Pain relief without extreme sedation is the most immediate. Medical cannabis allows many patients to remain awake, communicative, and present with family rather than existing in a semi-conscious state.
Beyond pain, cannabis has shown effectiveness in reducing nausea and vomiting, increasing appetite, and managing anxiety, all of which are common and distressing symptoms in end-of-life care.
At the hearing, Attorney Ken Sobel made his point clearly: Ryan’s Law gives patients in Ryan’s condition — some with only weeks to live — the assurance they need. It ensures that terminal patients can access cannabis without delay, surrounded by family and friends, rather than relying on fentanyl, which heavily sedates them.
For patients, their families, and nursing staff, the ability to choose a therapy that supports both comfort and consciousness during the final stage of life is not a small thing. It’s the difference between a goodbye and silence.
What Does Ryan’s Law Actually Require of Hospitals?
Ryan’s Law sets a clear framework that tries to balance patient access with institutional and legal concerns. Based on the California model that Kentucky is considering adopting, the key requirements are:
Hospitals and qualifying facilities (including acute care hospitals, skilled nursing facilities, hospice providers, and congregate living health facilities) must permit terminally ill patients to access medical cannabis if they qualify under the state’s existing medical marijuana law. This policy excludes state hospitals and chemical dependency recovery hospitals.
Patients or their caregivers are responsible for supplying, storing, and administering the cannabis. Hospitals prohibit staff and nurses from handling or dispensing it. Patients may only use non-smoked delivery methods, so tinctures, topicals, and edibles are all acceptable options. However, facilities ban smoking and vaping on their premises.
Each facility must develop written internal guidelines, provide secure storage options for cannabis brought on site, and document use in the patient’s medical records. A patient must also present either a valid medical cannabis card or written physician documentation to gain access.
Importantly, no hospital loses federal funding for complying. The CMS letter cited at the July 16 hearing confirmed this directly.
Where Does Kentucky’s Medical Cannabis Program Stand Right Now?
Kentucky legalized medical cannabis in 2023 under a bill signed by Gov. Beshear. The state’s program has moved steadily since then: the first dispensary opened in December 2025, cannabis gummies became available in early 2026, and by July 2026, the state had licensed 33 businesses across cultivation, processing, compliance, and retail.
As of June 2026, more than 24,288 Kentuckians hold medical cannabis cards. Beshear’s June 2026 executive order added 15 qualifying conditions to the original six, broadening eligibility to include patients with Parkinson’s disease, HIV/AIDS, fibromyalgia, arthritis, sickle cell anemia, and others. Terminal illnesses, neuropathies, and chronic pain now represent the broadest qualifying categories.
The program is active. The question Ryan’s Law raises is whether the patients who qualify can actually access that medicine when they need it most, which is inside a hospital at the end of their lives. Right now, that depends on each hospital’s internal policy. Some Kentucky hospitals reportedly allow it already. Others do not.
What Comes Next for Ryan’s Law in Kentucky?
Legislators have not yet formally introduced a bill. The July 16 committee hearing was an informational session, and Rep. Moser’s response signals the committee wants to understand what barriers actually exist in Kentucky hospitals before moving to legislate.
Bartell and his colleagues have made the pathway clearer with each state they’ve worked through. Opposition has decreased significantly since the federal rescheduling of cannabis from Schedule I to Schedule III. Bartell noted at the hearing that most state hearings now see no opposition at all.
If the pattern holds, Kentucky lawmakers could introduce a similar bill in the 2027 legislative session. This would put Kentucky on track to help Bartell reach his goal of adopting Ryan’s Law in all 37 medical cannabis states by the end of 2027.
For the families of terminally ill Kentuckians, that timeline matters.
Frequently Asked Questions
Ryan’s Law (Compassionate Access to Medical Cannabis Act) requires hospitals and healthcare facilities to allow terminally ill patients to use medical cannabis for symptom relief. First passed in California in 2021, the law has since been adopted by 11 additional states as of mid-2026.
Ryan’s Law takes its name from Ryan Bartell, a former Seattle teacher and US Coast Guard member who received a stage four pancreatic cancer diagnosis in 2018. When a hospital denied him access to medical cannabis, doctors placed him on fentanyl-based palliative care, causing him to lose weeks of consciousness. In response, his father Jim Bartell wrote the legislation.
On July 16, 2026, Kentucky’s Interim Joint Committee on Health Services heard testimony in support of a Kentucky version of Ryan’s Law. Committee co-chair Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser responded positively, indicating the committee would look into existing barriers in Kentucky hospitals.
Ryan’s Law gives terminally ill patients (with a life expectancy of one year or less) the right to use medical cannabis. To qualify, patients must enroll in their state’s medical cannabis program and get a valid cannabis card or written approval from their doctor.
As of July 2026, Ryan’s Law has been adopted in California and 11 other states, with more expected to follow in the coming years.
