MSDH Draft Regulation Summary
The Mississippi Department of Health (MSDH) released seven sections to the draft regulations for Mississippi’s medical marijuana program.
The MSDH has previously released three sections: Subpart 1: Product Safety and Testing, Subpart 3: Advertising and Marketing, and Subpart 4: Tracking and Labeling. You can read our summary of those sections here.
Our summary of the seven new draft regulations is below. The full text of the draft regulations can be viewed at the MSDH website linked here.
Subpart 2- General Requirements for the Medical Marijuana Program
Establishes and defines 4 license types: Cultivator, Manufacturer, Dispensary, and Independent Testing Laboratory.
Allows one entity to hold multiple license types (vertical integration), though Testing Labs must be independent.
Sets a $15,000 non-refundable application fee for each license type and directs the MSDH to grant/deny an application within 60 days.
Licensure fee is $10,000 per license, due upon application approval and license renewal each year. Licensure renewal must occur no later than 90 days before a license expires.
A licensee must begin operations within one year of getting a license.
Provides for an appeal process if an application or renewal is denied.
Establishes that all licensed entities are subject to HIPAA for the confidentiality of all patient health information.
For distance restrictions, a “school” is defined as a kindergarten or grades 1-12.
Subpart 5- Issuance of Medical Marijuana ID Cards
Established qualifications of and procedure for obtaining 5 types of ID cards or registrations: Patient ID card, caregiver ID card, caregiver institution registration, licensed entity ID card, and physician registration.
Requires patients to submit a Mississippi driver’s license to receive an ID card, meaning all patients must be Mississippi residents (unless eligible for reciprocity, see Subpart 6).
Patient ID card prices are $50, though SNAP, TanF or WIC enrollees are eligible for a $25 reduced priced card.
Requires physicians who want to certify patients for medical marijuana to register with the MSDH, disclose any relationship with a licensed entity, and obtain 4 hours of initial training and 2 hours of training each year thereafter.
Also requires physicians to check the Mississippi Prescription Monitoring Program database and comply with all regulations of the Mississippi Board of Medical Licensure.
Subpart 6- Reciprocity for Reciprocal Agreements with Other States for Patients Registered in Medical Marijuana Programs
Allows a qualified out-of-state patient to participate in Mississippi’s medical marijuana program if that patient is enrolled in their state’s medical marijuana program.
Guest patients and quest caregivers can be registered for up to 60 days with one 30-day renewal.
The MSDH may discontinue guest patient registrations if the supply of products in Mississippi cannot meet the demand for Mississippi patients.
Subpart 7- Qualifications and Limitations on Owners, Board Members, Officers, Agents, Employees, and Contractors of Licensed Entities
Defines owner, board member, officer, employee and contractor of a licensed entity.
Defines owner as a person who holds any portion of the economic or voting interests of a licensed entity AND who will have access to medical marijuana or a medical marijuana licensed entity, though the latter is not clarified.
Requires cultivators, manufacturers, and dispensaries to:
Not have an owner, board member or officer under the age of 21.
Not have an owner, board member, officer or agent that has had a licensed revoked under another state’s medical marijuana program.
Not have an owner, board member, officer or agent that has been convicted of a disqualifying criminal conviction (undefined) within past 5 years.
Have a 25% minimum controlling ownership by a current Mississippi resident(s).
Requires all owners, board members, officers and agents of a licensed entity to consent to a background check and provide fingerprint cards
All employees of licensed entities must:
Be at least 21 years old.
Have a valid driver’s license.
Not have a disqualifying criminal conviction within past 5 years or during employment.
Allows cultivators, manufacturers, and dispensaries to transport medical marijuana to other licensed entities, though only dispensaries can sell products to patients.
No licensee can deliver products to a patient or caregiver.
No licensee can buy or sell medical marijuana products from or to an unlicensed or out-of-state individual or entity.
Subpart 8- Qualifications and Limitations of Caregivers
Caregivers must: be at least 21 years old, be a current Mississippi resident, have not previously held a license or ID card that was revoked by another state, and have not been convicted of a disqualifying criminal conviction within past 5 years.
Patients can only have one caregiver at a time, though a caregiver can assist up to 10 patients.
Caregivers may buy, transport, deliver, and administer product to a qualified patient.
Subpart 9- Safe and Secure Processing of Medical Marijuana
Requires all licensees to keep on site for 5 years: all business records, including employee records, governance records, and financial records; all documents related to processing, preparation, transportation and sampling of products; and documentation of any purchase or sale of product to another licensee.
Provides security system requirements and other security measures for licensed entities.
Provides cleaning and sanitation guidelines.
Establishes requirements for transporting medical marijuana between licensed entities.
Establishes requirements for and documentation of the disposal of waste products as part of the cultivation/manufacturing process.
Subpart 10- Use of Medical Marijuana in Long Term Care Settings
Allows long term care (LTC) facilities to assist their residents in using medical marijuana if the patient is a registered medical marijuana patient.
Applies to assisted living facilities, nursing homes, hospice programs, and intermediate care facilities.
Allows LTC facilities to establish their own policies regarding storage of products, delivery methods patients may use, and qualifications of physicians who may certify the LTC residents for medical marijuana.