The Cannabis Media Council released the first edition of its Guidelines for Responsible Cannabis Advertising last year. In a nutshell, the guidelines represent a voluntary framework to keep cannabis advertising in check. Reading them raises an important question for me: should medical cannabis makers be allowed to market brands?

I used the term ‘makers’ intentionally. Think of manufacturers if it helps you better understand my meaning. My terminology choice is rooted in the fact that most of the states with legal medical cannabis do not allow patients to smoke plant material. Doing so would be counterintuitive to good health. So instead, patients consume medications derived from cannabis compounds.

The marketing issue comes into play in the sense that branding is a big part of selling things. Take the Cookies brand. It is one of the more well-known brands in the cannabis industry. Its name denotes something delicious and satisfying. But is that an appropriate image for medical cannabis? Therein lies the conundrum.

It’s Either Medicine or It’s Not

Marketing brands with inappropriate names is just a symptom of a potentially bigger problem: using medical cannabis as leverage to force the door open to recreational consumption. Looking at it from a medical perspective forces me to draw the conclusion that medical cannabis is either medicine or it’s not. And if it is, it should be treated like any other medicine.

With that said, pharmaceutical companies need to be very careful about how they market their products. They are not allowed to do just anything. Granted, they have been given a lot more leeway in recent years. But still, their speech is controlled somewhat by marketing regulations.

The same is true in most states with legal medical cannabis. Take Utah. The operators of Brigham City’s Beehive Farmacy explain that everyone in the medical cannabis industry needs to adhere to strict marketing guidelines. This includes cannabis growers, processors, pharmacies, and even the medical providers tasked with working directly with patients.

You can go into the Beehive Farmacy and find the Cookies brand. But neither Beehive nor the manufacturer can push the brand in a direction that equates it with a delicious snack that is appealing to children.

It’s All on the Edge

From my perspective, nearly all medical marketing is on the edge. Healthcare products and services rise to a whole different level of ethical responsibility given that they directly impact health and safety. Buying a prescription medication to manage high blood pressure is not the same thing as slapping down a couple of bucks for your favorite brand of peanut butter.

Nonetheless, I have seen my fair share of pharmaceutical commercials that seemed right on the edge of making light of human health. Some of the brand names they come up with for new prescription drugs are borderline absurd. It is a fine line to walk, and I think at least some pharmaceutical companies cross that line from time to time.

So far, I have not seen the same thing with medical cannabis. But I wouldn’t be surprised to see medical cannabis makers start pushing the envelope if some sort of federal standard isn’t adopted. But that standard will never come to fruition as long as federal and state laws conflict.

I admit that there are no easy answers to the marketing conundrum. But I still have questions. My biggest question is whether medical cannabis makers should be able to market brands the same way candy companies and beer makers do. I don’t think they should. But I am just one man with my own opinion.