Lawmakers Push For Medical Marijuana Use In Massachusetts Schools Amid Industry 'Dysfunction'

Massachusetts state Senator Susan Moran is fighting to enable legal medical marijuana use on school grounds for students with doctor's recommendations.

What happened: On Tuesday the legislature’s Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy held a hearing on S.59, an Act that would allow students access to their medical cannabis. Moran spoke in favor of the proposal saying that the issue is “incredibly important,” reported Boston Herald.

“Since medical marijuana use was legalized in 2012, thousands of patients across the commonwealth have been able to effectively utilize treatment under proper medical supervision. This includes school-age children, many of whom medical marijuana treatment has enabled to live more easily in their conditions,” she said.

Gov. Previously Vetoed The Idea

This is not the first time the issue has been brought up. In fact, when Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) signed into law a marijuana compromise bill addressing social equity and taxes in August 2022, he removed only one controversial section - the proposal to conduct a study on medical marijuana use by students at school. Previously, The American Academy of Pediatrics expressed its opposition to the proposed study on medical marijuana consumption in schools.

This means that under the current state law, cannabis use and possession are not legal on school property, and students who use it as a treatment must go through their school day without it.

Moran says this is not right, and that medical marijuana should be treated by schools like any other medicine.

“It should be carefully regulated and prescribed by a physician, but those with prescriptions should be able to take their medical marijuana when and where they need it,” Moran said. She added that the idea behind the measure is not to make Amsterdam coffee shops out of state high schools but to provide students access to their needed medicine. Moran explained that most young patients normally take their medical marijuana in the form of a pill and not by smoking a joint or using a bong.

Until this is allowed, parents need to leave their jobs, drive to school and then take their kids off-site to give them their needed medicine.

Creative Marijuana Business Owners

Cannabis business owners are thinking of innovative solutions to keep their operations going while they wait for state lawmakers to allow social consumption sites, writes 10 Boston.

One such owner, Sean Hope, has come up with the idea of Diaspora, which doesn’t “sell anything but experiences,” according to him. "We found locations on private property that we could have private events. And we do those events."

Diaspora is basically a private club for cannabis consumers to engage in various activities together, like practicing yoga for example.

"There are cities like Cambridge where you can buy cannabis, but there's no legal right to consume it unless you own your own your own home. And I believe that's also an equity issue," Hope said. "I do believe we need to find ways to remove the stigma and make it less about just the sale and more about the experiences."

Meanwhile, the cannabis market is affected by various issues such as declining prices with the average price per gram going from $13.77 in August 2021 to $6.06 in August 2023, and the recent suspension of Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) chair Shannon O’Brien.

State Rep. Michael Soter (R) is one of five lawmakers demanding an independent audit of the agency.

"Honestly, there's a lot of dysfunction there. And when I see a lot of dysfunction, we need to get that out of the way. This is this is a billion-dollar operation," Soter said. "This is a very difficult business. Massachusetts is not making it any better. And it starts with the CCC."

Photo: Benzinga edit with images by Max Fischer via Pexels and BestStockFoto on Shutterstock