Hawaii: Proposal to Expand Medical Marijuana Law Passed by Two Senate Committees on Same Day

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Hawaii: Proposal to Expand Medical Marijuana Law Passed by Two Senate Committees on Same Day

Legislation that would expand Hawaii’s medical marijuana law was passed by two Senate committees today, sending it towards a vote by the full Senate.

House Bill 1488 was passed unanimously today by both the Senate Judicial Law Committee, and the Senate Ways and Means Committee. The votes come roughly a week after the measure – which has already passed the House of Representatives – was approved by the Senate Commerce, Consumer Protection, and Health Committee.

House Bill 1488 would amend the definition of adequate supply of marijuana to include seven marijuana seedlings, and would “amend the definition of “debilitating medical condition” to include lupus, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, and autism as conditions that qualify for the legal use of medical marijuana.”

The proposal would also “amend the definition of the term “transport” to allow qualified patients and primary caregivers to transport up to one gram of medical marijuana for laboratory testing under certain conditions.”

Below is a summary of the other changes proposed in House Bill 1488.


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Limits each location used to cultivate marijuana to use by five qualifying patients. Authorizes primary caregivers to cultivate marijuana for qualifying patients until December 31, 2020. Adds considerations for establishing marijuana testing standards and selecting additional dispensary licensees. Allows DOH to consider whether existing dispensary licensees shall be allowed to increase plant count, increase the number of production centers, or increase the number of retail dispensing locations. Requires retention of video security recordings of production centers and dispensaries for 45 days. Extends civil service exemptions and interim rulemaking authority to 2020. Authorizes an alternate medical marijuana dispensary tracking system for use when the DOH computer tracking system in nonfunctional and requires DOH to report to the legislative oversight working group.

A similar measure (Senate Bill 174) to add lupus, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, arthritis and autism as qualifying medical cannabis conditions recently passed Hawaii’s Senate and its initial House Committee.

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