Recreational use of marijuana is no closer to being fully legalized this year in Hawaii, but some seniors in the Aloha State may be able to use medical cannabis freely under a new bill.
Senate Bill 2718 would exempt people 65 years or older from needing to have a debilitating medical condition to be eligible to use medical cannabis.
Current law requires individuals to be diagnosed by a physician to have a medical condition treatable with medical marijuana, and that the “potential benefits of the medical use of cannabis would likely outweigh the health risks” before being allowed to use medical marijuana.
Under SB 2718, that requirement would simply not apply to patients aged 65 or older.
“Every year, we introduce these bills to protect seniors that operate based on implied infirmity,” said Puna Sen. Joy San Buenaventura, a co-introducer of the bill. “For example, last year, there was a bill that increased the penalties for crimes committed against seniors.
“So we’re taking into account that aging comes with problems, like problems sleeping, tremors, pain, that could be relieved with medical cannabis,” San Buenaventura went on. “And we want people to get access to that without having to incur the cost of renewing their (medical marijuana) cards over and over again.”
The bill generated some controversy at a Senate Health Committee hearing on Feb. 7, when a representative of the state Department of Health voiced the department’s strong opposition to the bill.
“Removing the provider’s role to examine and monitor their patients could possibly jeopardize patient health and safety,” Tami Whitney of the DOH’s Medical Cannabis Registry Program said during that hearing. “Patients who are 65 and older may have other conditions and other medications that could result in unfavorable drug interactions.”
Whitney also said that, in the current draft of the bill, seniors would also be exempt from language limiting the quantity of medical cannabis possessed by a patient to “an adequate supply.” Because of this, she said, the measure inadvertently allows seniors to possess an unlimited amount of medical marijuana, which would make such limits for people under age 65 seem medically unjustifiable.
The state Office of the Attorney General had similar concerns. In testimony submitted to the Feb. 7 meeting, the office noted that the text of the bill could be construed to actually prevent anyone 65 or older from receiving medical cannabis at all.
The Health Committee postponed action on the bill until Monday, when it ultimately voted to pass the bill with amendments addressing the attorney general’s concerns and ensuring that the limits on how much medical cannabis a patient can possess would still apply to seniors under the measure.
San Buenaventura said seniors will still be subject to usage restrictions, such as the prohibition on driving while using cannabis products, the same as any other patient.
“And, frankly, by the age of 65, we’re looking at the age of retirement, so it won’t be interfering with too many people’s jobs,” San Buenaventura said.
Having passed the Senate Health Committee, the bill must next pass the Senate Judiciary Committee before a final vote by the full Senate.
Few other cannabis-related bills have progressed since the start of the 2022 legislative session. Among the dead bills are a pair that would legalize cannabis products for “responsible, adult use.”
The failure of these bills marks the latest in a series of annual attempts by legislators to fully legalize marijuana in Hawaii.
Other bills that are still active include some that would allow dispensaries to, under certain circumstances, deliver medical cannabis products to patients waiting in their cars; a bill allowing dispensaries to distribute cannabis cuttings to licensed growers; and a bill establishing June 14 as “Medical Cannabis Day.”
Email Michael Brestovansky@hawaiitribune-herald.com.