Arizona advances bill to make medical cannabis available to patients with PTSD and autism

A bill that would expand the list of requirements for medical cannabis and reduce treatment costs has been approved by the Arizona legislature.

The bill, SB 1466, was approved by a Legislative Committee on Monday. If enacted, the measure would result in a variety of changes to the state’s medicinal cannabis law — perhaps most notably, the addition of autism and post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of qualifying conditions.

It was approved by a vote of 7 to 2 by members of the Health and Human Services Committee hearing.

Outlet AZMarijuana has an overview of the key points of the bill, which includes: “Reducing the cost of the medical marijuana card to $50, with renewals every 2 years; 100% medical marijuana waiver for veterans; enact post-traumatic stress disorder into law; Adds Autism Spectrum Disorder as a Debilitating Condition; Align advertising, packaging and branding with the rules in Smart and Safe; Requires child safeguards – child-resistant packaging, bans advertising appealing to children, adds advertising restrictions; aligning the definition of marijuana and marijuana products; codifying the use of telemedicine; Updated QR Code and Track/Traceability requirements details; Provide a consistent COA cover sheet to simplify the consumer/patient experience; Remove a government-run lab testing council and replace it with a full public forum.”

The Arizona Dispensaries Association group has strongly supported the legislation.

“ADA supports SB1466, which gives veterans the opportunity to purchase a medical marijuana card for free,” said Ann Torrez, executive director of the Arizona Dispensaries Association, as quoted by AZMarijuana. “Veterans often suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder, insomnia, increased anxiety and chronic pain. A free medical marijuana card gives experienced patients access to medical cannabis treatment for all of these common conditions.”

“The primary purpose of the ADA is to promote and advocate for a safe, consumer-centric cannabis industry in Arizona,” Torrez continued. “Our goal is to continuously educate consumers about the importance of only visiting licensed dispensaries and only consuming THC and CBD products that have been laboratory tested and approved.”

The bill comes under review at a time when Arizona’s medical cannabis industry is suffering from sluggish sales.

In October, medical marijuana sales in the state totaled just over $31 million, marking the eighth consecutive month of decline.

Meanwhile, the state adult cannabis market, which opened in January 2021, continues to thrive.

In the same month, Arizona recreational cannabis sales totaled $73.8 million, a new high.

As AZ Mirror reported earlier this year, “the collapse of the medical program follows a pattern seen by other states, with medical markets being overtaken in the wake of the legalization of recreational sales.”

The outlet reported in January: “The state collects a 16% excise tax on recreational sales in addition to the standard sales tax; Medical patients pay approximately 6% in state sales tax, which is levied as a transaction privilege tax on cannabis retail outlets. Local jurisdictions charge about an additional 2% for all marijuana sales. One-third of recovery taxes collected are for community college and provisional community college districts; 31% for public safety — police, fire, fire districts, first responders — 25% for the Arizona Highway User Revenue Fund and 10% for the Judiciary Reinvestment Fund, dedicated to the provision of public health services, counseling, job training and other community services for communities adversely and disproportionately affected by arrests and criminalization of marijuana. The medicinal market has continued to bleed both sales and participants, following a trend in some states that legalized adult-use cannabis years after medicinal cannabis markets were established.”