A bill

to amend the South Carolina Code of Laws BY ENACTING THE "SOUTH CAROLINA COMPASSIONATE CARE ACT" BY ADDING ARTICLE 20 TO CHAPTER 53, TITLE 44 SO AS TO AUTHORIZE THE USE OF CANNABIS PRODUCTS BY PATIENTS WITH DEBILITATING MEDICAL CONDITIONS WHO ARE UNDER THE CARE OF A PHYSICIAN, WITH EXCEPTIONS; TO AUTHORIZE THE OPERATION OF MEDICAL CANNABIS ESTABLISHMENTS AND TO PROVIDE FOR THEIR REGULATION; TO ESTABLISH THE SOUTH CAROLINA MEDICAL CANNABIS PROGRAM FUND AND TO PROVIDE FOR ITS OPERATION AND USE; TO PROVIDE FOR THE TAXATION OF CANNABIS PRODUCTS; TO CREATE A MEDICAL CANNABIS ADVISORY BOARD AND TO PROVIDE FOR ITS DUTIES; TO REQUIRE THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL AND THE BOARD OF PHARMACY TO PROMULGATE CERTAIN REGULATIONS; TO CREATE CRIMINAL PENALTIES FOR VIOLATION OF THE ARTICLE; AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES; BY AMENDING SECTION 12-36-2120, RELATING TO CERTAIN SALES EXEMPTIONS, SO AS TO MAKE THE EXEMPTION INAPPLICABLE TO THE SALE OF CANNABIS PRODUCTS; BY ADDING SECTION 56-5-3910 SO AS TO ESTABLISH A CRIMINAL PENALTY FOR THE USE OF CANNABIS PRODUCTS WHILE DRIVING A MOTOR VEHICLE; BY ADDING SECTIONS 44-53-1810, 44-53-1820, AND 44-53-1830 ALL RELATING JULIAN'S LAW, SO AS TO MAKE CONFORMING CHANGES; AND BY REPEALING ARTICLE 4 of CHAPTER 53, TITLE 44 RELATING TO CONTROLLED SUBSTANCES THERAPEUTIC RESEARCH.

Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:

SECTION 1.    This act may be known as the "South Carolina Compassionate Care Act".

SECTION 2.    (A) The General Assembly finds that:

      (1) as of January 1, 2021, thirty-seven states and the District of Columbia have removed state-level criminal penalties from the medical use, cultivation, and distribution of cannabis, and South Carolina now joins in this effort for the health and welfare of its citizens;

      (2) the United States Congress has signaled support for allowing states to set their own medical cannabis policies by approving budgets that include a proviso that restricts the Department of Justice from using any appropriated funds to interfere with the implementation of those laws;

      (3) on January 12, 2017, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine issued a report presenting nearly one hundred conclusions related to the health effects of cannabis and cannabinoid use. Among other things, this report concluded that there is evidence that cannabis or cannabinoids are effective for the treatment of several medical conditions and symptoms, including chronic pain, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, and the improvement of multiple sclerosis spasticity symptoms;

      (4) clinical studies continue to show the therapeutic value of cannabis in treating a wide array of debilitating medical conditions, including relief of neuropathic pain that often fails to respond to conventional treatments, reduced reliance on opiate-based painkillers, and symptoms of autism; and

      (5) cannabis has many accepted medical uses in the United States, having been recommended by thousands of licensed physicians to more than two million patients in the states that have medical cannabis laws, and a wide range of medical and public health organizations have recognized the medical utility of cannabis, including the American Academy of HIV Medicine, the American College of Physicians, the American Nurses Association, the American Public Health Association, the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, the U.S. Pain Foundation, and the Epilepsy Foundation.

   (B) Nothing in this act shall be construed or interpreted as an effort by the South Carolina General Assembly to legalize cannabis for any reason except for therapeutic benefit to patients, upon the certification and with the supervision of a physician, under the circumstances and subject to the guidelines contained herein.

SECTION 3.   Chapter 53, Title 44 of the S.C. Code is amended by adding:

   Article 20

   Compassionate Care

   Section 44-53-2010.   As used in this article:

   (1)(a) "Allowable amount of medical cannabis" or "allowable amount of cannabis products" means, for a fourteen-day period:

         (i) cannabis products for topical administration including, but not limited to, patches for transdermal administration or lotions, creams, or ointments, that contain a total of no more than four thousand milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol;

         (ii) cannabis products for oral administration including, but not limited to, oils, tinctures, capsules, or edible forms, that contain a total of no more than one thousand six hundred milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol;

         (iii) cannabis products that consist of oils for vaporization that contain a total of no more than eight thousand two hundred milligrams of delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol; or

         (iv) for any other modes of delivery, an equivalent amount as determined by the department.

      (b)(i) In any case in which a physician has specified a certain amount of cannabis products pursuant to Section 44-53-2080(B), an allowable amount of cannabis products is the amount of cannabis products specified for a fourteen-day period.

         (ii) In any case in which a physician has not specified a certain amount of cannabis products, an allowable amount of cannabis products is the amount of cannabis products specified for a fourteen-day period as provided in subitem (a)(i), (ii), (iii), or (iv).

      (c) The allowable amount of medical cannabis does not include industrial hemp for human consumption.

   (2) "Bona fide physician-patient relationship" has the same meaning as in Section 40-47-113(A).

   (3)(a) "Cannabis" means:

         (i) all parts of any plant of the cannabis genus of plants, whether growing or not;

         (ii) the seeds of the plant;

         (iii) the resin extracted from any part of the plant; and

         (iv) every compound, manufacture, salt, derivative, mixture, or preparation of the plant, its seeds, or resin.

      (b) "Cannabis" does not mean:

         (i) the mature stalks of the plant;

         (ii) fiber produced from the stalks;

         (iii) oil or cake made from the seeds of the plant;

         (iv) a product approved as a prescription medication by the United States Food and Drug Administration; or

         (v) the sterilized seeds of the plant that are incapable of germination.

   (4) "Cannabis product" means a product that is infused with or otherwise contains cannabis or an extract thereof and that is intended for use, consumption, absorption, or any method of ingestion by humans cultivated and produced by a licensed facility in South Carolina. The term includes, but is not limited to, an edible cannabis product, beverage, topical product, ointment, oil, patch, spray, suppository, or tincture.

   (5) "Cardholder" means a qualifying patient or a designated caregiver who has been issued and possesses a valid registry identification card from the department.

   (6) "Child-resistant packaging" means packaging that is designed or constructed to be significantly difficult for children under five years of age to open and not difficult for normal adults to use properly, substantially similar to those defined by 16 C.F.R. 1700.20 (1995), opaque so that the packaging does not allow the product to be seen without opening the packaging material, and resealable for any product intended for more than a single use or containing multiple servings.

   (7) "Cultivation center" means a facility located in South Carolina operated by an organization or business that is licensed by the department pursuant to this article to cultivate, possess, and distribute cannabis products to processing facilities, therapeutic cannabis pharmacies, and independent testing laboratories. Land used for cultivation may not exceed a total of two acres per license as provided in Section 44-53-2390 and cannot be a multi-level facility.

   (8) "Debilitating medical condition" means:

      (a) a diagnosis of one or more of the following that also results in a debilitating condition to the individual patient:

         (i) cancer;

         (ii) multiple sclerosis;

         (iii) a neurological disease or disorder, including epilepsy;

         (iv) post-traumatic stress disorder, subject, however, to the evidentiary requirements in Section 44-53-2100(A)(4) to confirm that the applicant has experienced one or more traumatic events;

         (v) Crohn's disease;

         (vi) sickle cell anemia;

         (vii) ulcerative colitis;

         (viii) cachexia or wasting syndrome;

         (ix) autism;

         (x) severe or persistent nausea in a person who is not pregnant that is related to end-of-life or hospice care, or who is bedridden or homebound because of a condition;

         (xi) a chronic medical condition causing severe and persistent muscle spasms; or

         (xii) any chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition for which an opioid is currently or could be prescribed by a physician based on generally accepted standards of care, subject, however, to the requirements of Section 44-53-2080(A)(3)(h)(i) and (ii) as to a physician's attestation regarding objective proof of the etiology of the patient's pain or regarding the patient having been diagnosed with a specific medical condition or disease that causes the patient severe pain;

      (b) a terminal illness with a life expectancy of less than one year in the opinion of the person's treating physician; or

      (c) any other serious medical condition or its treatment added by the Medical Cannabis Advisory Board, as provided for in Section 44-53-2060.

   (9) "Department" means the South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.

   (10) "Designated caregiver" or "caregiver" means a person who possesses a valid registry identification card issued by the department authorizing the person to assist a qualifying patient with the medical use of cannabis. A designated caregiver must be at least twenty-one years of age unless the person is the parent or legal guardian of each qualifying patient the person assists.

   (11) "Diversion" means the obtaining or transferring of cannabis products from a legal possession or use to an illegal use.

   (12) "Edible cannabis product" means an individually packaged food or potable liquid into which has been incorporated a cannabinoid concentrate or extract or the dried leaves or flowers of cannabis with a tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than ten milligrams per serving and may include a gelatin-based chewable product; however, an edible cannabis product cannot resemble or taste like commercially sold candies or other food that is typically marketed to children. An edible cannabis product cannot be in the shape of cartoons, toys, animals, or people. An edible cannabis product cannot include baked goods that would be attractive to children.

   (13) "Exit packaging" means a sealed, child-resistant packaging receptacle into which prepackaged cannabis products are placed at the retail point of sale at a therapeutic cannabis pharmacy.

   (14) "Human consumption" means ingestion or topical application to the skin or hair.

   (15) "Independent testing laboratory" means a facility licensed by the department pursuant to this article to offer or perform testing related to cannabis or cannabis products that is independent of cultivation centers, processing facilities, therapeutic cannabis pharmacies, and physicians who issue written certifications for the use of medical cannabis.

   (16) "Industrial hemp" means the plant Cannabis sativa L. and any part of the plant, whether growing or not, with a delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol concentration of not more than 0.3 percent on a dried weight basis.

   (17) "Medical cannabis establishment" means a cultivation center, therapeutic cannabis pharmacy, transporter, independent testing laboratory, or processing facility licensed by the department pursuant to this article. Members of the General Assembly and family members as defined in Section 8-13-100(15), may not operate, directly or indirectly receive financial payments of any kind, or directly or indirectly own a medical cannabis establishment until July 1, 2028. This exclusion does not apply to members and their families if the member recused himself from voting on this act.

   (18) "Medical cannabis establishment agent" means a board member, owner, officer, pharmacist, employee, or volunteer of a medical cannabis establishment. Members of the General Assembly and family members, as defined in Section 8-13-100(15), are prohibited from being a medical cannabis establishment agent. This exclusion does not apply to members and their families if the member recused himself from voting on this act.

   (19) "Medical cannabis establishment principa