Medical marijuana would be legal in Wisconsin under restrictive Republican bill

The new measure comes after Democratic Gov. Tony Evers, who has called for legalizing both the medical and recreational use of marijuana, said he would likely support a more restrictive medical-only program as long as it doesn’t include provisions Democrats would consider poison pills.

Under the proposal, individuals with severe chronic illnesses like cancer would be able to receive a diagnosis from their doctor confirming their conditions, allowing them to secure a permit. From there, individuals would be able to purchase non-smokable medicinal marijuana at five facilities managed by the state Department of Health Services.

“We want to make this available to people, but we want tight controls on it as well,” Rep. Jon Plumer, R-Lodi, told reporters at the Capitol building in Madison Monday. Plumer said Republicans hope to pass the measure and send it to Evers’ desk in the coming months.

However, those tight controls resulted in pushback from Democratic lawmakers. Senate Minority Leader Dianne Hesselbein, D-Middleton, said while the proposal “is a small step in the right direction, I fear that it may be too restrictive.”

“We do not need the most restrictive medicinal program in the nation, we need the most effective,” Hesselbein continued.

Sen. Mary Felzkowski, R-Irma, who has proposed different medical marijuana legislation in the past, including the first such measure to receive a public hearing in 2022, said some concepts in the bill “sound incredibly well thought out,” but she did highlight concern with the creation of state-run dispensaries as opposed to a private-sector model.

“I am a firm believer that private entities, run by those with expertise in this area of medicine, are more efficient and more effective than any government agency,” Felzkowski said in a statement. “Taking this option off the table is the primary cause of my unease at this time.”

Evers told the Wisconsin State Journal on Thursday he would likely sign a Republican medical marijuana measure.

“We’ll see,” Evers said last week when asked about the GOP proposal. “If it’s a bill that’s not filled with poison pills, I probably will sign it.”

Evers’ spokesperson Britt Cudaback said Monday the governor will review the proposal and plans to collect input from Wisconsinites and other stakeholders as the measure works through the legislative process.

Registry requirement

The proposal would create an Office of Medical Cannabis Regulation within the state DHS to manage a patient and caregiver registry and oversee the dispensing of cannabis products. The head of the office would be selected by the governor and approved by the state Senate. DHS would also determine where to place the five facilities.

To be included on the registry, patients must be permanent residents of Wisconsin, not be on parole, probation or extended supervision and have a written confirmation from a doctor certifying that they meet the state’s eligibility requirements. Patients must be at least 18 years old, while those younger than 18 would need to have written consent from their parents or legal guardians.

Under the proposal, eligible patients would include individuals with cancer, seizures or epilepsy, glaucoma, severe chronic pain, muscle spasms or nausea, multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease and those with a terminal illness with a life expectancy of less than one year. Only the patient or up to three chosen caregivers would be allowed to purchase the medical marijuana.

Medical cannabis products would include those “in the form of concentrates, oils, tinctures, edibles, pills, topical forms, gels, creams, vapors, patches, liquids, and forms administered by a nebulizer but excludes cannabis in a form that can be smoked,” according to an analysis of the bill by the Legislative Reference Bureau.

Marijuana growers and processors would remain independent and licensed with the state Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection, under the proposal. To be eligible for a grower or processor license, at least 80% of an applicant’s principal officers or board members must be residents of Wisconsin.

Plumer said medical marijuana sold in Wisconsin would not be subject to the state’s sales tax and the bill intends to create a “break-even” program that would not generate revenue.

Neighbors’ laws

The new proposal comes after several failed efforts by lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to legalize some form of marijuana use in Wisconsin. Meanwhile, recreational and medicinal use has been implemented in several neighboring states like Minnesota, Illinois and Michigan.

Wisconsin is one of a dozen states that does not allow for recreational or medicinal marijuana use.

An analysis conducted early last year by the nonpartisan Wisconsin Policy Forum found that half of Wisconsinites above the age of 21, or more than 2.1 million people, lived within a 75-minute drive of a recreational marijuana dispensary in a neighboring state. The analysis was conducted before Minnesota legalized recreational use.

Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, R-Rochester, has said the new proposal is similar to Minnesota’s medical marijuana program, which was recently modified to allow for smokable forms of cannabis.

However, Vos has remained adamant that any medical measure passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature will not provide a pathway to recreational use in Wisconsin.

Senate Majority Leader Devin LeMahieu, R-Oostburg, who previously said he opposed legalizing marijuana for medical use, has since said Senate Republicans are moving closer to supporting the policy for serious conditions.

An October 2022 Marquette Law School Poll found 64% of registered voters in Wisconsin, including 46% of Republicans, want marijuana to be fully legalized. A 2019 Marquette Law School Poll found 83% of Wisconsinites said medical marijuana should be legal.

Republicans last year stripped provisions to legalize marijuana from Evers’ two-year budget.