ATLANTA, Ga. (Atlanta News First) — New considerations are being made in Georgia by a key marijuana policy group to potentially let large mail couriers ship medical cannabis directly to patients in the state.
The Georgia Access to Medical Marijuana Commission (GRMM) said the potential update to the state’s policies were made possible by a change in Washington. In April, the office of Attorney General Todd Blanche reclassified medical marijuana from a schedule 1 drug — the most dangerous substances in the country — to the much tamer schedule-3 class.
In his order, Blanche wrote that it opened the door for medical marijuana to be delivered via “U.S. Postal Service, a common carrier,” so long as the shipper uses “certified mail, or a carrier service providing equivalent tracking and proof of delivery, with delivery restricted to, and the signature required of, the patient, caregiver, or healthcare institution employee.”
“No person other than the registered patient, the patient’s caregiver, or the listed healthcare institution employee may sign for or accept such delivery,” the order goes on to say.
Under the HOPE Act, a bill passed in 2019 to regulate the state’s low-dose THC program, the GRMM is empowered to make decisions without further approval from state legislators.
The legal argument for reclassifying marijuana as a schedule 3 drug is still ongoing. Final arguments against the move were supposed to be submitted to the court on Tuesday.
Andrew Turnage, the commission’s executive director, said private couriers like UPS and FedEx already have the ability to ship schedule 3 substances, as they do when they transport pharmaceutical drugs from – for example – a distribution center to your local pharmacy.
USPS responded to Atlanta News First’s request for comment, indicating they would follow all federal and state regulations. Turnage suspects they are waiting to see how the courts rule on marijuana’s reclassification before changing any of their own policies.
But in looking ahead to the future, Turnage sees this as a potential lifesaver for medical patients who often have a hard time getting to and from a dispensary – areas he refers to as cannabis deserts in Georgia.
“We don’t have a dispensary in all areas of the state, but we do have patients in all areas of the state,” he said. “This, obviously, is going to provide a great option for patients who are having to currently travel hours one-way just to get to a dispensary.”
For patients who live full-time in nursing care, elder care, long term care or medical facilities, it may be one of the only ways for them to get consistent access to their medicine, Turnage says. That goes too for families who may have a difficult time getting to dispensaries, no matter how close they are.
Corey Lowe’s daughter Victoria suffers from constant seizures. Lowe said over the years, medical cannabis has been among the only things that’s helped, but it can be difficult to pack up and leave the home.
“It’s honestly like having a baby, you have to get a diaper bag ready and get the person ready and load up their wheelchair and travel to the store,” she said. “If someone has cancer or if someone has seizures or they’re on hospice care, they can’t just hop in the car and drive 30 minutes to a dispensary and get medicine.”
Lowe is also the director of marijuana policy group Peachtree NORML and said she hears stories from the families they work with about the potential convenience of being able to get medical cannabis shipped directly to their homes.
“I hear from patients all over the state – down near the state line and to the top of the state near Tennessee – who don’t have access,” Lowe said. “It’s Georgia patients first, and that’s what this means, is putting patients first.”
Any regulations changes could also allow medical patients in Georgia to get cannabis products via mail from their local pharmacies as well. Independent pharmacies are already empowered and enabled to carry medical cannabis products approved by the commission for registered patients and would be impacted by the potential changes as well.
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