Delta-8 hemp and Texas medical marijuana industries to face off in the upcoming legislative session

A potential showdown is brewing between the medical cannabis market and the hemp industry in Texas .

The Compassionate Use Program is facing its worst existential crisis since its inception in 2015 .

Strict rules on who is eligible, what products can be sold and where they can be stored have limited the program's impact.

Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick gave senators a list of legislative directives for the next session.

Retail cannabis dispensaries sprang up by the thousands after the 2019 agricultural hemp legislation opened up the state’s hemp industry.

Texas is now home to more than 7,000 registered consumable hemp retail spots.

The federal Food and Drug Administration has warned about the negative health impacts of unregulated hemp products, such as hallucinations, vomiting, anxiety and loss of consciousness.

Texas is one of about a dozen states that has not legalized marijuana in any form for broad use.

The state’s Compassionate Use Program has about 12,000 active participants out of nearly 45,000 patients.

Texans with a variety of conditions can access cannabis oil from marijuana plants with less than 1% THC .