Carol Kayreh, Dafna Ginzberg, Gabriela Olimpio Fernandes, Maria Gabriella Pimentel Carneiro
This research analyzes the conflict between the restrictions on the medicinal use of Cannabis sativa and the guarantee of the fundamental right to health under the Brazilian legal system. The study is based on an examination of the tension between the need for access to effective therapeutic treatments and the limitations imposed by current legislation, which restricts the use, cultivation, and production of the substance for medicinal purposes. It is observed that the prohibitionist policy, historically shaped by perceptions regarding the harmful effects of drugs, is incompatible with the constitutional principles that safeguard the right to health, human dignity, and access to treatments essential for the preservation of life and quality of life. In this context, there has been a growing reliance on the Judiciary by patients seeking authorization to use or cultivate Cannabis for therapeutic purposes, a phenomenon that highlights the increasing judicialization of healthcare. Although these judicial decisions ensure access to treatment in specific cases, they also reveal the inadequacy of effective and accessible public policies aimed at regulating the subject. The research adopts a qualitative approach, developed through a bibliographic review and documentary analysis, encompassing the examination of legal doctrine, case law, and the relevant constitutional and statutory provisions. Finally, it is concluded that regulating the medicinal use of Cannabis sativa is essential to ensure the effective realization of the right to health, strengthen legal certainty, reduce excessive judicialization, and bring the Brazilian legal system closer to international models of social protection and rights protection.