Kansas’ medical cannabis proposal would be among nation’s strictest
- Senate Bill 555 introduced in Kansas would establish a five-year pilot program allowing seriously ill individuals access to medical cannabis from pharmacies.
- The bill prohibits smokable flower, vaporizer cartridges, and flavored edibles, but allows for tinctures, pills, and topicals.
- Medical marijuana products would only be available from pharmacies, not dispensaries, if SB 555 becomes law.
- Some senators have raised concerns about potential litigation and other issues with the proposed bill.
Seriously ill people in Kansas would be able to access nonsmokable medical cannabis from pharmacies if a bill introduced in the state Senate becomes law.
Kansas is one of only 10 states in the United States without either medical or adult-use marijuana legalization.
Previous efforts to legalize medical cannabis in Kansas have been blocked in the state Senate, where a committee introduced Senate Bill 555 on Monday.
If passed, SB 555 would create a five-year pilot program with medical marijuana access for people with one of 16 serious medical conditions, the Topeka Capital Journal reported.
Smokable flower, vaporizer cartridges and flavored edibles would all be banned, but patients would be able to obtain tinctures, pills and topicals, according to the newspaper.
Those products would be available only from pharmacies under SB 555, not from MMJ dispensaries, as they are in other state-regulated markets.
Such limitations aren’t seen elsewhere in the United States, but advocates of the bill said the restrictions were created with previous opposition in mind.
State Senate President Ty Masterson, a Republican, said in January he was supportive of a limited pilot program.
But other senators said the new proposal is still problematic.
Democratic Sen. Cindy Holscher said the bill could expose the state to litigation, according to Wichita TV station KWCH.
The bill has yet to be heard in committee.
No hearing date is scheduled, according to a legislative tracker.