I received a copy of the proposed "Wisconsin Medical 🌱 Bill" presented today by GOP state lawmakers, and felt a condensed version highlighting the details would be helpful.
Here's a detailed summary of the Bill:
Patient and Caregiver Registry: The bill establishes a registry for patients and caregivers. Patients with certain medical conditions can apply for inclusion. A fee of $100 (or $50 for hardship cases) is required upon application and annually. Patients under 18 must have their legal guardians informed.
Caregiver Designation: Patients can designate up to three caregivers to purchase and possess medical cannabis on their behalf. Caregivers must be over 21, not on parole, probation, or extended supervision, and residents of Wisconsin.
Medical Cannabis Dispensaries: The state will establish five dispensaries, with one in each of the five regions designated by the Department for data analysis and communication. Dispensaries can only sell to registered patients or caregivers who present valid identification and a registry card.
Pharmacist Consultation: Each dispensary must employ qualified pharmacists to advise patients and caregivers on the appropriate use and dosages of medical cannabis products. Before dispensing, a pharmacist must consult with the patient or caregiver and recommend a daily dosage, which is recorded in the registry.
Supply Limitations: Dispensaries can provide a 30-day supply initially, followed by up to a 90-day supply based on the pharmacist's recommendation. However, they cannot dispense to a patient or caregiver who, based on previous dispensing and recommended dosage, should have more than a 7-day supply.
Advertising Prohibitions: Dispensaries and prescribers are not allowed to advertise their services.
Price Setting and Sales: The office sets the price of medical cannabis products, sufficient only to recoup product and operational costs.
Enforcement and Penalties: The office may conduct investigations and impose penalties for violations of the bill’s provisions. Penalties range from fines to removal from the patient and caregiver registry.
Legal Protections: Lawful use or possession of medical cannabis products cannot be used against patients in child custody or placement decisions. Also, financial institutions serving licensed cannabis entities are not in violation of certain financial statutes.
Initial Fees and Licensing: The bill specifies initial fees for grower licenses ($10,000), processor licenses ($50,000), and laboratory licenses ($5,000).
Effective Date: The act takes effect on the first day of the 7th month following its publication.
**Please vote in the poll below, and leave your feedback of the Wisconsin Medical 🌱 Bill Proposal in the comments section. We will share the results with your elected officials!
- The Let's Legalize Wisconsin Team
Do you feel the Proposed Bill is a good start for Cannabis Legalization in Wisconsin?
Yes, this is a good Bill
No, this is not a good Bill
I Think the fees are a little steep.
I don’t agree with the part where it’s only edible. I have tried edibles and some work and some do not. The problem with edibles is it’s hard to manage the proper dosage when consuming. also, it takes longer for the edibles to take effect. When smoking, one can take one to a few puffs and feel the effects immediately. So, it’s easier to manage one’s dose. When one is in serious pain who wants to wait for it to take effect. My son was an addict for a few years, after going to rehab he maintained his sobriety. He was the diagnosed with ALS at the age of 29 years old. I watched my son who had ALS smoke…
Surely such experts in the law would see the conflicts of being a provider, subject to HIPAA, and at the same time, providing data to unrelated government entities. Not that I trust those johnny-bottoms not to accidentally on purpose let the beans spill. And if they hope to peel enough users away from the meth and fentanyl crowd, to make real progress, it's going to take full legalization to make a deep enough cut. The taxes need to be low, and citizens must be allowed access. Leave this to the free market, and don't let counties or municipalities block dispensaries. All that does is protect turf for the unregulated players.
This is not a good start. Its barely in the right direction based on how hard this would still make access for people who need it. 5 dispensaries in the whole state? If there's a discount for hardship for a medical license there should be an option for those who can't travel to a dispensary too. Not to mention no advertising or being allowed to operate for profits other than recoup and expenses. Economically our state isn't going to benefit from this and that is a big selling point that they've completely missed all together.
While progressive in some spots, like the legal protections, price regulation, and extended caregiver count, this bill misses some of the most important lessons that proper medical programs have already taught.
Potency can vary greatly; from batch to batch from the production facility, and will quickly degrade and lose therapeutic effects over time. Proper storage is imperative to continued potency, further complicating the pharmacists job if anywhere along the supply chain environmental conditions were not withheld. Cutting off dispensation because patients "should have" 7 days left will only drive those in need back to the black market when they run out earlier than expected, either due to degraded cannabis or improperly dosed and dispensed cannabis.
Restricting choice by limiting total…