Medical Marijuana Law Strictest in the U.S.

Mark Manigan Beginning this summer, chronically ill New Jersey residents will have an new avenue available to them for treatment: medical marijuana. The new law, signed in January by departing Gov. Jon S. Corzine, is the most restrictive in the country, so before you take out your prescription pad, let’s take a look at what makes this state’s law so different from ones passed elsewhere.

The new law makes New Jersey the 14th state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana, joining Vermont, Rhode Island and Maine on the East Coast. But unlike medical marijuana laws in some other states, where marijuana is somewhat easily obtained, New Jersey lawmakers have put provisions in place that they hope will discourage abuses by patients. For instance, in California, marijuana is allowable for any chronic condition, even a migraine. New Jersey, however, is limiting access to the drug to patients with specific medical conditions for which other treatment is not as effective.

The law specifically identifies the following medical conditions:

• Seizure disorders, including epilepsy
• Intractable skeletal muscular spasticity
• Glaucoma
• HIV
• Cancer
• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• Multiple sclerosis
• Terminal cancer
• Muscular dystrophy
• Inflammatory bowel disease or
• Crohn’s disease
• Terminal illness with a prognosis of less than a year

Physicians need to certify that the patient has a debilitating medical condition for which recognized drugs or treatments are not, or would not be, effective. The Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS), the agency that is responsible for implementing the provisions in the new law, has left the window open for other conditions to be added to the list upon later review. Physicians will also need to certify that the potential benefits of the marijuana use would likely outweigh the health risks for the patient, according to the DHSS. Moreover, a physician must have a bona fide relationship with a patient before issuing a recommendation for medical marijuana. This means that the physician has ongoing responsibility to assess, care and treat the patient’s medical condition. The ongoing treatment and relationship cannot be for the limited purpose of authorizing the use of medical marijuana. So if your patient is coming to you strictly to get marijuana and nothing else, they are out of luck.

The state is also tightly regulating details like who can distribute marijuana, how much can be prescribed and patient registration.

Patient Registry Required
Patients must be a New Jersey resident to get a recommendation for medical marijuana. They will need to apply for registry ID cards for themselves and, if applicable, for their primary caregiver, who would be allowed to obtain the drug on the patient’s behalf if the patient cannot do so. The registry card would contain the name, address and date of birth of the patient, the date of issuance and expiration of the card, a photo of the cardholder and other information that the commissioner of health specifies. Anyone in possession of an ID card would be safe from prosecution for marijuana possession or penalty by state or local authorities.

These registry cards will be valid for two years. Caregivers and patients will have to go through a background check before they are issued a card. Any conviction involving a controlled dangerous substance would make them ineligible for the registry. Minors may use medical marijuana but only with parental consent.

Although the law does not specify where the drug may be used, it does expressly prohibit anyone under the influence of marijuana from operating a motor vehicle, aircraft or boat and prohibits the use of medical marijuana in a school bus or other form of public transportation, on school grounds, in any correctional facility or at any public park, beach or recreational or youth center.

Treatment Centers to be Established
The law also provides for the establishment of alternative treatment centers, which would grow marijuana and dispense the drug and other related supplies and educational materials. Individuals are not allowed to grow their own marijuana.

There will be six of these centers set up throughout the state: two in northern New Jersey, two in central and two in South Jersey. The law requires the first two centers in each region to be nonprofit entities. Centers subsequently issued permits may be nonprofit or for profit. Alternative treatment centers will be able to charge a “reasonable fee” to cover costs and there will be an application fee to register, although that fee has not yet been set. It is not clear from the law whether licensees will be allowed to have multiple facilities to produce and distribute medical marijuana.

While a “prescription” is not needed, physicians must provide written “instructions” for a patient or their caregiver to present at the alternative treatment center. The instructions must provide the amount of marijuana that a patient may be dispensed in a 30-day period—no more than two ounces.