Legislation to add animals to Rhode Island’s medical marijuana program has been introduced in the state’s Senate.
Legislation to expand the definition of “qualifying patient” to include “any animal having a debilitating medical condition as determined by a veterinarian for purposes of a recommendation for medical marijuana”, has been filed in the Rhode Island Senate.
Filed by Senator Frank Lombardo, the measure is cosponsored by Senators Louis Dipalma, Frank Ciccone, Ryan Pearson and Joshua Miller. It has been assigned to the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Under current law “Qualifying patient” means “a person who has been certified by a practitioner as having a debilitating medical condition and is a resident of Rhode Island.”
Senate Bill 0810 would alter this to say:
“Qualifying patient” means a person who has been certified by a practitioner as having a debilitating medical condition and is a resident of Rhode Island or an animal who has been 16 certified by a veterinary practitioner as having a debilitating medical condition.
The measure also adds a new section of the state’s medical marijuana law stating:
“Veterinary practitioner” means a person licensed to practice veterinary medicine pursuant to chapter of title 5, who may provide a qualifying patient with a written certification in accordance with regulations promulgated by the department of health.
The full text of Senate Bill 0810 can be found here.
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