Public Forums Announced to Debate Proposed Florida Medical Marijuana Rules
Floridians voted overwhelminglyin favor ofAmendment 2on Election Day, passing the measure intendedto regulate the production and dispensing of medical cannabis to any patient who is diagnosed with a debilitating medical condition by their doctor.
However, newlyproposed ruleby the Department of Health seek to significantly amend this legislation in a manner that is contrary to patients needs.
Specifically, the rules would limit those patients who may qualify for cannabis therapy only to those diagnosed with one of ten specific conditions. As approved by voters, the Amendment provides physicians to discretion to recommend medical marijuana in any instance where they believe that its medical use would likely outweigh the potential health risks.
Further, the proposed rules seek to limit cannabis production and dispensing solely to those seven nurseries previously selected to provide high-CBD varieties of cannabis as part of an extremely limited 2014programand to restrict renewal cards from being issued from annually as passed by Amendment 2 to 45 days.
To date, this program has been insufficient at providing patients with adequate access to the plant. It is highly unlikely that these limited numbers of producers and dispensers could meet the needs of Floridas growing pool of patients.
In the coming weeks, regulators will be holding a number of public forums throughout the state to seek feedback to these proposed rules. Please consider attending one of these events to tell regulators that these changes are not in the best interest of Florida patients.
Medical marijuana public hearings:
Jacksonville: 2-4 p.m. Feb. 6 at the Duval County Health Department, 900 University Blvd. North.
Fort Lauderdale: 10 a.m.-noon Feb. 7 at the Broward County Health Department, 780 SW 24th St.
Tampa: 9-11 a.m. Feb. 8 at the DOH Tampa Branch Laboratory, 3602 Sepctrum ...
