The Oregon House of Representatives has approved a bill that would allow patients with debilitating medical conditions to access medical marijuana in certain health facilities such as hospices.
The legislation from Rep. Farrah Chaichi (D) cleared the chamber in a 39-3 vote on Friday, sending it to the Senate for consideration. That chamber’s Health Care Committee is scheduled to take up the proposal on Wednesday.
HB 4142 would require hospice, palliative and home care organizations, as well as residential facilities, to develop rules permitting registered patients with debilitating conditions to use medical cannabis.
The reform is similar to—albeit somewhat more limited than—multiple “Ryan’s law” measures that have advanced in state legislatures across the country. Ryan’s law, which is named after a young cannabis patient in California who passed away, generally refers to a policy broadly permitting medical marijuana use in health facilities such as hospitals.
The Oregon bill wouldn’t extend to hospitals, but it would build upon the state’s medical cannabis program in a way that advocates say would meaningfully improve quality of life for seriously ill patients.
Under the proposal, the Oregon State Board of Nursing would further be prohibited “from disciplining a nurse who discusses the medical use
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