Sooner State OKs Medical Marijuana

(Fall 2018) By passing State Question 788 in June, Oklahoma residents legalized medical marijuana. Oklahomans can receive a medical marijuana license by being approved by a board-certified doctor. State Question 788 went into effect July 26, and the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority, overseen by the state’s Health Department, is slated to begin receiving applications for patients, growers, processors, transporters and dispensaries by August 25.

However, in early July the Oklahoma State Department of Health enacted emergency rules for the program’s rollout including a ban on smokable marijuana at dispensaries. Among others, the rules specify

• dispensaries must be managed by a properly-licensed professional
• marijuana plants grown at home for medicinal use must be cultivated behind a locked fence at least six feet in height
• physicians must register with the state Health Department prior to recommending marijuana usage to patients and are required to review these recommendations once a year
• physicians must conduct mental health and substance abuse screening on patients and evaluate the patient’s chances of using or selling marijuana for non-medicinal purposes
• patients will be levied a 7% tax when purchasing products from a dispensary

An approved user in Oklahoma may have as much as eight ounces of the drug in his or her home. (Home-grown marijuana may still be smoked, according to the additional rules outlined.) The ballot measure mandates that commercial growers, processors and dispensaries are state-licensed. The new law specifies that municipalities cannot block marijuana dispensaries. Also contained in the mandate’s language is protections for the employer, giving a business the right to act upon employee use or possession of the drug in the workplace.

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