SENATE BILL 242

56th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - first session, 2023

INTRODUCED BY

Gerald Ortiz y Pino

 

 

 

 

 

AN ACT

RELATING TO HEALTH; AMENDING THE LYNN AND ERIN COMPASSIONATE USE ACT TO CHANGE THE PERIOD OF VALIDITY FOR A MEDICAL CANNABIS PATIENT REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION CARD AND TO CHANGE THE APPLICATION PERIOD FOR RENEWAL.

 

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:

     SECTION 1. Section 26-2B-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2007, Chapter 210, Section 7, as amended) is amended to read:

     "26-2B-7. REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION CARDS--DEPARTMENT RULES--DUTIES--RECIPROCITY.--

          A. After consultation with the advisory board, the department shall promulgate rules in accordance with the State Rules Act to implement the purpose of the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act. The rules shall:

                (1) govern the manner in which the department will consider applications for registry identification cards and for the renewal of identification cards for qualified patients and primary caregivers;

                (2) define the amount of cannabis that is necessary to constitute an adequate supply, including amounts for topical treatments;

                (3) identify criteria and set forth procedures for including additional medical conditions, medical treatments or diseases to the list of debilitating medical conditions that qualify for the medical use of cannabis. Procedures shall include a petition process and shall allow for public comment and public hearings before the advisory board;

                (4) set forth additional medical conditions, medical treatments or diseases to the list of debilitating medical conditions that qualify for the medical use of cannabis as recommended by the advisory board;

                (5) determine additional duties and responsibilities of the advisory board; and

                (6) be revised and updated as necessary.

          B. The department shall issue registry identification cards to a patient and to the primary caregiver for that patient, if any, who submit the following, in accordance with the department's rules:

                (1) a written certification;

                (2) the name, address and date of birth of the patient;

                (3) the name, address and telephone number of the patient's practitioner; and

                (4) the name, address and date of birth of the patient's primary caregiver, if any.

          C. The department shall verify the information contained in an application submitted pursuant to Subsection B of this section and shall approve or deny an application within thirty days of receipt. The department may deny an application only if the applicant did not provide the information required pursuant to Subsection B of this section or if the department determines that the information provided is false. A person whose application has been denied shall not reapply for six months from the date of the denial unless otherwise authorized by the department.

          D. The department shall issue a registry identification card within five days of approving an application, and a card shall expire [three] two years after the date of issuance.

          E. A registry identification card shall contain:

                (1) the name and date of birth of the qualified patient and primary caregiver, if any;

                (2) the date of issuance and expiration date of the registry identification card; and

                (3) other information that the department may require by rule.

          F. A person who possesses a registry identification card shall notify the department of any change in the person's name, qualified patient's practitioner, qualified patient's primary caregiver or change in status of the qualified patient's debilitating medical condition within ten days of the change.

          G. Possession of or application for a registry identification card shall not constitute probable cause or give rise to reasonable suspicion for a governmental agency to search the person or property of the person possessing or applying for the card.

          H. The department shall maintain a confidential file containing the names and addresses of the persons who have either applied for or received a registry identification card. Individual names on the list shall be confidential and not subject to disclosure, except:

                (1) to authorized employees or agents of the department as necessary to perform the duties of the department pursuant to the provisions of the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act;

                (2) to authorized employees of state or local law enforcement agencies, but only for the purpose of verifying that a person is lawfully in possession of a registry identification card;

                (3) to the division; or

                (4) as provided in the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.

          I. By March 1, 2020, the secretary of health shall adopt and promulgate rules relating to medical cannabis program reciprocity. The department may identify requirements for the granting of reciprocity, including provisions limiting the period of time in which a reciprocal participant may participate in the medical cannabis program.

          J. A reciprocal participant:

                (1) may participate in the medical cannabis program in accordance with department rules;

                (2) shall not be required to comply with the registry identification card application and renewal requirements established pursuant to this section and department rules;

                (3) shall at all times possess proof of authorization to participate in the medical cannabis program of another state, the District of Columbia, a territory or commonwealth of the United States or a New Mexico Indian nation, tribe or pueblo and shall present proof of that authorization when purchasing cannabis from a person licensed pursuant to the Cannabis Regulation Act; and

                (4) shall register with a person licensed pursuant to the Cannabis Regulation Act for the purpose of tracking sales to the reciprocal participant in an electronic system that is accessible to the department."

     SECTION 2. Section 26-2B-7.1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 2019, Chapter 247, Section 9) is amended to read:

     "26-2B-7.1. REGISTRY IDENTIFICATION CARD--REGISTRATION-- RENEWAL--WRITTEN CERTIFICATION.--The department shall require a qualified patient to reapply for a registry identification card no sooner than [two years and eleven months from] thirty days before the date the patient's current registry identification card [is issued] expires; provided that, in order to remain eligible for participation in the medical cannabis program established pursuant to the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act, a qualified patient shall submit [annually] to the department together with the qualified patient's application for a registry card a statement from a practitioner indicating that:

          A. the practitioner has examined the qualified patient during the preceding twelve months;

          B. the qualified patient continues to have a debilitating medical condition; and

          C. the practitioner believes that the potential health benefits of the medical use of cannabis would likely outweigh the health risks for the qualified patient."

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