The Louisiana Senate voted 33-2 on Wednesday to pass SB 270, sponsored by Sen. Katrina Jackson-Andrews (D), which would allow patients with terminal or irreversible conditions to use medical marijuana while hospitalized. The bill now moves to the House of Representatives.
"This bill does exactly what the title says," Jackson-Andrews said before the vote. "When a patient is in pain and they believe that therapeutic marijuana will work and have a prescription for it, it allows them to have that prescription delivered to the hospital and administered by one of their family members or themselves."
Under the bill, hospitals must establish written policies permitting covered patients to consume medical cannabis on-site in forms other than smoking or vaping. Emergency and outpatient departments are excluded from that requirement under an amendment a Senate committee approved earlier this month.
The revised bill text also specifies that patients and primary caregivers are solely responsible for obtaining and administering medical marijuana, which must be "stored securely at all times in a locked container provided by the patient." Healthcare professionals and staff are prohibited from "administering, storing, retrieving, or assisting the patient with the medical marijuana."
The amendment, developed with input from the Louisiana Hospital Association, also broadens the federal opt-out clause: hospitals may suspend compliance if federal authorities take action against any healthcare facility in the state over medical cannabis use, rather than only facilities directly targeted.
Separately, the Louisiana Senate Health and Welfare Committee recently approved a bill to create a psychedelic-assisted therapy pilot program funded by opioid settlement dollars, aimed at developing alternative treatments including psilocybin and ibogaine. Lawmakers are also considering legislation to establish a three-year adult-use marijuana legalization pilot program to determine whether permanent legalization should follow.
