Can I Get a Medical Marijuana Card for Multiple Sclerosis or Muscle Spasms in Arkansas?

Multiple sclerosis and severe or persistent muscle spasms are both qualifying conditions for an Arkansas MMJ card — and spasticity is one of the areas where cannabis research is most developed.

MS affects the nervous system in ways that make muscle spasms and spasticity a daily reality for many patients. Conventional antispasticity medications help some people and not others, and side effects — particularly sedation — can be significant. Cannabis has been studied specifically for this problem.

What qualifies under Arkansas law

Arkansas's Medical Marijuana Amendment covers severe or persistent muscle spasms, specifically including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis. This means both MS patients dealing with spasticity and patients with severe muscle spasms from other causes — such as spinal cord injury — may qualify under this condition.

What your certifying physician will want to see: documentation of your MS diagnosis or your muscle spasm condition, plus information about how it affects your daily function and what treatments you've tried.

What the research suggests

Of all the conditions on Arkansas's qualifying list, spasticity in MS has one of the more developed evidence bases for cannabis. A 2015 systematic review published in JAMA (Whiting et al.) found moderate-quality evidence suggesting cannabinoids may be associated with improvements in spasticity. A more recent 2025 meta-analysis reviewing nine clinical trials involving over 2,500 MS patients found that cannabis-based therapies may be associated with clinically meaningful improvements in spasticity scores — while noting that high variability across studies and suspected bias mean the findings should be interpreted with caution.

The honest picture: the signal is real enough to take seriously, but cannabis doesn't work the same way for every MS patient, and the research quality overall is still developing. The most consistent findings are for spasticity and pain. Evidence for other MS symptoms — tremors, bladder dysfunction, cognitive symptoms — is much weaker and less consistent.

In several countries, a pharmaceutical cannabinoid spray called Nabiximols (Sativex) is specifically approved for MS spasticity. It's not approved in the United States, but its international approval reflects how seriously the MS research community has taken this area.

What to bring to your certification appointment

• MS diagnosis documentation — neurologist records
• Description of spasticity symptoms — severity, frequency, how they affect daily function
• Treatment history — medications tried for spasticity (baclofen, tizanidine, etc.) and their results
• Your Arkansas driver's license or state ID

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1. Schedule a certification appointment with an Arkansas-licensed MD or DO. Telehealth works. You can find a licensed MMJ doctor here.
2. Apply through the Arkansas Department of Health portal. Upload your certification and AR ID, pay the $50 fee.
3. Receive your card in 10–14 days. Print the temporary digital card immediately on approval.

Products that may help with MS spasticity

• THC-dominant or balanced THC:CBD products — spasticity research has primarily involved THC-containing products rather than CBD alone
• Tinctures and capsules for consistent dosing — spasticity management benefits from regularity
• Indica-dominant strains for evening spasm relief and sleep
• Topicals for localized muscle tension in specific areas

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MS spasticity varies a lot from patient to patient — some have constant stiffness, others have painful spasms. Tell our team which pattern you're dealing with and what time of day is worst. That shapes the product recommendation significantly.

Ready to start?

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Amanda Strickland is CEO of The Source dispensary in Northwest Arkansas and creator of the Roots & Reefer documentary, magazine, and educational platform. This article is for educational purposes only and is not medical advice. Always consult a qualified healthcare provider about your specific situation.