Beyond Medical Cannabis: Considerations for Updates to Hospital Policies and Procedures

Cannabis (marijuana) is classified as a schedule-I controlled substance, currently not accepted for medical use and with a high potential for abuse. As stated in a previous P&T article, although marijuana remains illegal at the federal level, 33 states have legalized its medical use for certain indications and 10 have legalized its recreational use.1 Among those states are differing laws that regulate the possession or supply of usable marijuana, with certain states providing more flexibility than others when it comes to using medical marijuana. Open in a separate window Following the 2018 Agriculture Improvement Act, which created a new category of cannabis classified as “hemp,” thereby removing it from the Controlled Substances Act, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced new steps to advance consideration of the lawful marketing of cannabis and cannabis-derived products under existing authorities.2 Such action could include cannabinoid products (oils, foods, and candy) that currently are mostly unregulated or only routinely monitored compared with prescription drugs. The growing liberalization of marijuana use is accompanied by multiple clinical claims supporting the potential therapeutic benefits of medical marijuana on health outcomes. It also introduces discussion not only among health care providers and hospital systems regarding their independent regulation and distribution policies and procedures but among those commercial-plan sponsors who are responsible for a safe, regulatory-compliant workplace. Such sponsors include self-funded entities like hospitals themselves and most industry types with various legal or regulatory oversight responsibilities to state and federal government agencies. Hospitals, as plan sponsors and care providers, are now forced to navigate the regulatory and political considerations of medical marijuana and establish a philosophy on its internal and external use for their facilities.