Adult-use cannabis legislation has yet to be formally introduced this year in the Pennsylvania Legislature, but the state’s medical cannabis program was expanded on June 30. Signed by Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf on Wednesday, House Bill 1024 allows qualified patients to legally possess up to a 90-day supply of cannabis, an increase from the previously allowed 30-day supply. It also permits patients to continue utilizing curbside dispensing services. Both changes were adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, but the new law makes those provisions permanent. In addition, H.B. 1024 removes the cap that one caregiver may only support a maximum of five patients and authorizes “synchronous interaction,” or physician-patient remote consultations that occur in real-time via audio or video conferencing. The law also expands the qualifying conditions for eligibility to include cancer remission therapy, as well as spinal cord or central nervous system damage with “indication of intractable spasticity and other associated neuropathies,” according to the bill’s text. According to the governor, the new law acts on the recommendations made by the Pennsylvania Department of Health to revise the Medical Marijuana Act, which was signed into law in April 2016.
Cannabis Business Times, 07/02/2021 07:31:00