General Assembly Substitute Bill No. 7182
January Session, 2017 *_____HB07182VA____030617____*
General Assembly
Substitute Bill No. 7182
January Session, 2017
*_____HB07182VA____030617____*
AN ACT WAIVING CERTAIN FEES FOR VETERANS WHO ARE QUALIFYING PATIENTS FOR THE PALLIATIVE USE OF MARIJUANA.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Assembly convened:
Section 1. Subsection (a) of section 21a-408d of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):
(a) Each qualifying patient who is issued a written certification for the palliative use of marijuana under subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 21a-408a, and the primary caregiver of such qualifying patient, shall register with the Department of Consumer Protection. Such registration shall be effective from the date the Department of Consumer Protection issues a certificate of registration until the expiration of the written certification issued by the physician or advanced practice registered nurse. The qualifying patient and the primary caregiver shall provide sufficient identifying information, as determined by the department, to establish the personal identity of the qualifying patient and the primary caregiver. The department shall afford the qualifying patient an opportunity to voluntarily provide information identifying such patient as a veteran, as defined in subsection (a) of section 27-103. If the qualifying patient is under eighteen years of age and not an emancipated minor, the custodial parent, guardian or other person having legal custody of the qualifying patient shall also provide a letter from both the qualifying patient's primary care provider and a physician who is board certified in an area of medicine involved in the treatment of the debilitating condition for which the qualifying patient was certified that confirms that the palliative use of marijuana is in the best interest of the qualifying patient. A physician may issue a written certification for the palliative use of marijuana by a qualifying patient who is under eighteen years of age, provided such written certification shall not be for marijuana in a dosage form that requires that the marijuana be smoked, inhaled or vaporized. The qualifying patient or the primary caregiver shall report any change in the identifying information to the department not later than five business days after such change. The department shall issue a registration certificate to the qualifying patient and to the primary caregiver and may charge a reasonable fee, not to exceed twenty-five dollars, for each registration certificate issued under this subsection, except that on and after July 1, 2017, no such fee may be charged to any such qualifying patient who is a veteran. Any registration fees collected by the department under this subsection shall be paid to the State Treasurer and credited to the General Fund.
Sec. 2. Subsection (b) of section 21a-408m of the general statutes is repealed and the following is substituted in lieu thereof (Effective July 1, 2017):
(b) The Commissioner of Consumer Protection shall adopt regulations, in accordance with chapter 54, to establish a reasonable fee to be collected from each qualifying patient to whom a written certification for the palliative use of marijuana is issued under subdivision (1) of subsection (a) of section 21a-408a, for the purpose of offsetting the direct and indirect costs of administering the provisions of sections 21a-408 to 21a-408n, inclusive, except that on and after July 1, 2017, no such fee may be collected from any such qualifying patient who is a veteran, as defined in subsection (a) of section 27-103. The commissioner shall collect such fee at the time the qualifying patient registers with the Department of Consumer Protection under subsection (a) of section 21a-408d, as amended by this act. Such fee shall be in addition to any registration fee that may be charged under said subsection. The fees required to be collected by the commissioner from qualifying patients under this subsection shall be paid to the State Treasurer and credited to the General Fund.
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1 July 1, 2017 21a-408d(a)
Sec. 2 July 1, 2017 21a-408m(b)
This act shall take effect as follows and shall amend the following sections:
Section 1
July 1, 2017
21a-408d(a)
Sec. 2
July 1, 2017
21a-408m(b)
VA Joint Favorable Subst.
VA
Joint Favorable Subst.