Filed May 2, 2019 HEALTH PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES BRANCH ...

HEALTH

51 NJR 5(2) May 20, 2019 Filed May 2, 2019

PUBLIC HEALTH SERVICES BRANCH

DIVISION OF MEDICINAL MARIJUANA

Medicinal Marijuana

Readoption with Amendments: N.J.A.C. 8:64

Adopted Repeal and New Rule: N.J.A.C. 8:64-5.1

Adopted Repeal: N.J.A.C. 8:64-10.7

Proposed: June 18, 2018, at 50 N.J.R. 1398(a).

Adopted: April 26, 2019, by Shereef M. Elnahal, MD, MBA, Commissioner, Department

of Health.

Filed: April 26, 2019, as R.2019 d.049, with non-substantial changes not requiring

additional public notice and comment (see N.J.A.C. 1:30-6.3), and with the proposed

amendment at N.J.A.C. 8:64-7.9 not adopted.

Authority: N.J.S.A. 24:6I-1 et seq., particularly 24:6I-3, 4, 7, and 16.

Effective Dates: April 26, 2019, Readoption;

May 20, 2019, Amendments, New Rule, and Repeals.

Expiration Date: April 26, 2026.

Summary of Public Comments and Agency Responses:

The Department received comments from the following:

1. Justin Alpert, Livingston, NJ

2. Rebecca Barnes, Lawrence, NJ

3. Raul Barreiro, Livingston, NJ

4. Chris Beals, President and General Counsel, and Dustin McDonald, Dustin McDonald, Vice President, Government Relations, Weedmaps

5. Kate M. Bell, Esq., Marijuana Policy Project, Washington, DC 6. Mara Brough, Senior Manager of Advocacy, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, National Multiple Sclerosis Society, Woodbridge, NJ 7. Anthony Bennett, Monmouth Junction, NJ 8. Cristina Buccola, Esq., New York, NY 9. Patricia Cancelli, Pennsauken, NJ 10. Aubrey Conway, Parlin, NJ 11. Laurent Crenshaw, Senior Director of Government Affairs, Eaze Solutions Inc., San Francisco, CA 12. Robert Devine, Mount Laurel, NJ 13. Evelyn De-Souza, Linden, NJ 14. Hilary Downing, MAMMA (Mothers Advocating Medical Marijuana for Autism), Whitehouse Station, NJ 15. Nicholas J. Etten, Vice President, Government Affairs, Acreage Holdings, New York, NY 16. Nancy S. Fitterer, President and Chief Executive Officer, Home Care & Hospice Association of NJ, Cranford, NJ 17. Peter Furey, Executive Director, New Jersey Farm Bureau, Trenton, NJ 18. Agustin Garcia, President, Garcorp International, Inc., Miami, FL 19. David Green, East Brunswick, NJ 20. Patrick Haugh, North Brunswick, NJ

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21. Andrew Holsman, Mount Laurel, NJ 22. Eric Karsh, Point Pleasant Borough, NJ 23. David L Knowlton, Chairman and President, Compassionate Care Foundation, Egg Harbor Township, NJ 24. Jeanne Van Duzer Lang, Chief of Staff, Patients Out of Time, Washington, NJ 25. Gaetano Lardieri, Newark, NJ 26. Charles Latini, American Planning Association -- NJ, West Trenton, NJ 27. Scott Ledbetter, Glassboro, NJ 28. Giselle Marmolejos, Elizabeth, NJ 29. Danielle McBride, Voorhees, NJ 30. Deborah Miran, Lutherville, MD 31. Terry Morriken, Morris Plains, NJ 32. Hugh O'Beirne, President, New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association, Trenton, NJ 33. Lisa Parles, Glassboro NJ 34. Shiel Patel, Marlton, NJ 35. John W. Poole, MD, President, Board of Trustees, Medical Society of New Jersey, Lawrenceville, NJ 36. Oleg Rivkin, Ridgewood 37. Teri Roach, Vineland, NJ 38. Peter Rosenfeld, Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Collingswood, NJ

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39. Jessica Rumer, New Jersey Cannabusiness Association, Westmont, NJ 40. George Schidlovsky, President, CuraleafNJ, Inc. 41. Alan Silber, Esq., Pashman Stein Walder Hayden, Hackensack, NJ 42. Laramie Silber, Patients Out of Time, Washington, NJ 43. Brett Stein, Toms River, NJ 44. David Stetser, Mantua, NJ 45. Michelle Tihanyi, Red Bank, NJ 46. Edward N. Tobias, Esq., East Brunswick, NJ 47. Bharat Vasan, Chief Executive Officer, PAX Labs, Inc., San Francisco, CA 48. Christian Velasquez, Sativa Cross, Dover, NJ 49. Ken Wolski, Coalition for Medical Marijuana -- NJ, Trenton, NJ Quoted, summarized, and/or paraphrased below, are the comments and the Department's responses. The numbers in parentheses following the comments below correspond to the commenter numbers above. General Support 1. COMMENT: A commenter states, "[the] Murphy administration inherited a flawed [medicinal] marijuana program limited by an extremely small number of licensed businesses, leading to some of the highest prices for medical cannabis in the country, as well as severe restrictions on the types of cannabis and cannabis products available to patients. These and other factors, including the obvious hostility toward medical cannabis evinced by the previous administration, contributed towards extremely low participation in the program. [The commenter] commends the New Jersey Department of Health [(Department)] and Governor Murphy for their commitment to improving

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patient access to the [medicinal] marijuana program and for the steps they have already taken toward that end. [The commenter] supports the regulatory changes being proposed [and the] additional changes suggested in the EO 6 [Report] that will require action by the legislature. [The] proposed [rulemaking is] a step forward in improving New Jersey's [medicinal] marijuana program." (5) 2. COMMENT: A commenter "supports the rights of people with [multiple sclerosis (MS)] to work with their healthcare providers to access marijuana for medical purposes in accordance with [State] law, where such use has been approved. The [Guideline Development Subcommittee of the] American Academy of Neurology [published a 2014 report stating] that some forms of marijuana may relieve MS-related symptoms such as ... spasticity, pain[,] and urinary frequency. Additionally, individuals living with MS have personally reported that the use of [medicinal] marijuana has lessened many MS symptoms and provided pain relief ... The [commenter] applauds New Jersey for moving forward with improving the [medicinal marijuana program]. [Many] of these changes are a start to making the program more accessible and affordable for New Jerseyans living with MS." (6) 3. COMMENT: A commenter notes the assertion in the proposed rulemaking that it is "designed `to realize the goal of expanding patient access [(citation omitted).]' And many of the [proposed amendments, repeals, and new rule] are extremely pro-patient: N.J.A.C. 8:64-5.1 [would empower] the Commissioner to propose [and/or] adopt debilitating medical conditions ... without requiring a lengthy petition process; N.J.A.C. 8:64-7.9 [would allow] ATCs to have satellite locations; the repeal of N.J.A.C. 8:64-10.7 [would enable] ATCs to produce [and/or] dispense multiple strains of [medicinal

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