ATLANTA — Georgia may be faster than other states at launching its registration system for medical marijuana patients, but lawmakers have yet to fix all the kinks in the recent legalization of the medicine.
State officials launched on Tuesday the new card registry, as required by “Haleigh’s Hope Act,” a bill signed into law by Gov. Nathan Deal in April to allow patients with specific health issues to possess cannabis oil, or medical marijuana.
“I want to congratulate the state on getting the registration card access up and running in just a handful of months – that’s really quite an accomplishment compared to what a lot of the other states have done,” said Mike Liszewski, an expert on the state-by-state and federal medical marijuana laws.
Cardholders can possess 20 fluid ounces of cannabis oil. Patients seeking to be registered must have lived in Georgia for at least one year – or be less than one year old – and currently suffer from one of the eight conditions listed in the law, including cancer, seizures and Parkinson’s disease.
Once registered by their physician, individuals can pick up their cards at one of 18 specific locations across the state. The card will be valid for two years from the date issued. The decision to register a patient is left to the discretion of their doctor.
The Georgia Commission on Medical Cannabis, created under the new law, met for the first time on Tuesday to determine what would be the best model for an in-state, cultivation, processing and distribution system of medical cannabis in Georgia.
“We’ve got a difficult task ahead of us, but a very important one that means a lot to a lot of people in our state,” said Commission Chair and Rep. Allen Peake, R-Macon. “It’s crucial that we come up with the right solution.”
The Commission is to submit a proposal to Gov. Deal and the General Assembly by December 2015.
The new law does not yet address how medical marijuana is made, bought or transported, and doctors will not prescribe or dispense it.
This limitation in the law will pose a significant challenge to cardholders seeking to bring medical marijuana into the state for use, Liszewski said. Under Georgia law, the patient is by definition a felon if they possess too much of the medicine, yet they will have to travel to another state each time they need to bring more back to Georgia.
“When you step onto that airplane, there may be some issues,” he said. “Or if you drive from Colorado to Georgia, you’ll be going through several states that don’t have these laws to protect patients.”
While Georgia has made an impressive start to its medical marijuana program, Liszewski said patients and their caregivers will be putting themselves at risk each time they leave the state to obtain the medicine.
