Medical Marijuana Update

A Georgia pharmacy challenges the DEA, and more.

Georgia Pharmacy Defies DEA, Begins Selling Medical Marijuana to Patients. Lawmakers passed a law under which pharmacies would sell medical marijuana to qualified patients, But the DEA then sent letters to dozens of state pharmacies warning them that dispensing medical marijuana would put them in violation of the Controlled Substances Act, which limits pharmacies licensed by the agency to only selling controlled substances in schedules I-V.

That warning largely put the kibosh on pharmacy medical marijuana sales -- until now. A drug store in Augusta, the Living Well Pharmacy, began selling medical marijuana to registered patients last month.

"It's a new frontier," said pharmacy owner Vic Johnson. "I really think pharmacies are an ideal outlet for dispensing medical cannabis, because if you come to my pharmacy already, we can talk about what medications you already are taking."

He also said that many patients are already taking highly addictive drugs, "and the quality of life that can happen when they come off those medications is just incredible."

Living Well sells products from Botanical Sciences, one of two licensed producers in the state. Botanical Sciences had been providing products to at least three pharmacies before the DEA warning letter last October scared them off.

"All DEA registrants, including DEA-registered pharmacies, are required to abide by all relevant federal laws and regulations," said the letter from Matthew J. Strait, a DEA deputy assistant administrator in the agency's Diversion Control Division. "A DEA-registered pharmacy may only dispense controlled substances in Schedules II-V of the Controlled Substances Act. Neither marijuana nor THC can lawfully be possessed, handled, or dispensed by any DEA-registered pharmacy."

What sanctions Johnson could face is unclear. DEA could revoke his license to dispense federally controlled substances, or he could face other civil or even criminal charges. He says he is considering relinquishing his DEA license, which would mean he could no longer sell other substances in Schedules II-V of the Controlled Substances Act (CSA), including painkillers, sleeping pills, and even some cough medicines.

Pennsylvania

Pittsburgh Bans Workplace Discrimination Against Medical Marijuana Patients. On Tuesday, the city council gave final approval to an ordinance that bars many employers in the city from discriminating against registered medical marijuana patients. The ordinance blocks employers from drug testing registered patients for THC during prior to and during employment and brings patients into the city's existing anti-discrimination code for workers -- with some exceptions.

Under the ordinance, city employers can no longer "discriminate in hiring or employment against any employee or prospective employee because of the individual's lawful status as a medical marijuana patient, including by requiring pre-employment testing for marijuana and such testing during employment as a condition of the employee's employment."

Among the exceptions, however, are workers in the state or federal transportation departments and those who carry firearms as part of their jobs. The ordinance also controversially carves out an exception for workers who are part of collective bargaining agreements.

Employers can still bar workers from using medical marijuana on the job and they can still test workers if there is a suspicion of onsite impairment.

"Gainful employment should be accessible to everyone regardless of the type of medical treatment they receive," said Commission on Human Relations Executive Director Rachel Shepherd. "Taking a prescribed medication for a qualifying disability should not diminish trust in a person's ability to be a reliable and productive employee, nor should it affect their ability to be considered in the hiring process."