Louisiana Medical marijuana patients have safe access to smokable weed We

State lawmakers in Louisiana passed a bill on Wednesday giving patients in the state’s medical marijuana program access to smokable forms of cannabis. The move, House Bill 391, was passed 76-17 in the Louisiana House of Representatives after being approved by the state Senate by 23-14 votes last month.

Under the newly passed measure, registered patients in Louisiana’s medical marijuana program will be allowed to possess and consume unprocessed, smokable forms of cannabis. The program’s current regulations only allow patients access to medical marijuana products, including topicals, tinctures, gums, and inhalers that deliver a metered dose of a vaporized cannabis. Raw flower marijuana is not allowed, and smoking of medicinal marijuana products is also not allowed.

Republican House of Representatives spokesman Tanner Magee, sponsor of the bill, told local media that the approved products were too expensive for many of the state’s medical marijuana patients.

“Most of the products are not insured,” said Magee. “This is one way of offering a cheaper option.”

HB 391 was originally approved by lawmakers in the Louisiana House of Representatives in May. However, the bill was changed because it was being scrutinized by the state Senate, so the House of Representatives had to vote again on the revised version. The move received overwhelming bipartisan support from both houses of the Louisiana State Legislature.

“This is very popular in every corner of the state and it’s what people want and what people need,” Magee said.

Republican MP Larry Bagley, who found he had never smoked marijuana, said cannabis is a wonder drug for a close relative who lives with chronic pain.

“I’ve seen the relief it can provide,” said Bagley.

With the compromise version of the measure now approved by both houses of the Louisiana Legislature, HB 391 now heads the office of Democratic Governor John Bel Edwards. According to several reports in local media, the governor is expected to sign the law.

House Bill 514, a complementary measure to HB 391 that would impose a tax on medicinal cannabis flowers, is currently under consideration by the Louisiana Senate. On Wednesday, the Senate Finance Committee approved an amended version of the bill and referred the measure to the Senate for a vote.

Decriminalization law on the table for Louisiana too

Louisiana state lawmakers are also discussing a measure to decriminalize adult possession of small amounts of cannabis. Under Measure House Bill 652, possession of up to 14 grams (about half an ounce) of cannabis would only be punishable by a fine of up to $ 100 in the first and second offenses. Minor marijuana possession violations would continue to be considered a crime, but would no longer face jail sentences.

“We don’t need to clutter our prisons with marijuana crimes,” Democratic MP Denise Marcelle, an advocate for the law, told local media last month.

The Louisiana House of Representatives approved HB 652 on May 11 by 67 votes to 24, with substantial support from members of the two major political parties. The draft law is now waiting for the state senate to take action.

Some of Louisiana’s largest cities, including New Orleans, Baton Rouge and Shreveport, have already taken steps to decriminalize low-level marijuana possession. In New Orleans, penalties for a first offense involving cannabis possession are capped at just $ 40, while some city guides are calling for the fine to be reduced even further to $ 1.

In 2018, the Louisiana capital Baton Rouge eliminated jail time as a possible punishment for possessing less than 14 grams of marijuana. Instead, a fine of between $ 40 and $ 100 will be imposed, depending on the number of previous offenses for a particular defendant. Shreveport’s revised regulation is similar to HB 652.