The current law that allows for the medical use of marijuana is Florida Senate Bill 8-A (SB 8-A). SB 8-A builds on existing compassionate use laws. In short, SB 8-A specifies that low- and high- THC cannabis can be used for medical use and establishes procedures for authorized physicians to give medical cannabis certifications to qualifying patients at certified medical marijuana treatment centers. A list for qualifications is available on this page.
Before SB 8-A, medical cannabis was legalized for medical use. Governor Rick Scott signed the Florida Compassionate Medical Cannabis Act (SB 1030) in 2014- legalizing the prescription of low-THC specifically for terminally-ill, cancer and severe epilepsy patients. This bill was nicknamed “Charlotte’s Web” after the state of Florida’s decision to have certifying physicians and clinics exclusively prescribe a strain of hemp with that name. Charlotte’s web hemp, originally cultivated by companies in Colorado, was picked specifically for its high CBD and low THC contents. Florida recognized that CBD also had potential for wellness treatment.
In 2016, the compassionate use bill from 2014 was updated. The Right to Try Act (SB 1052) allowed for the manufacture and dispensing of high-THC, eliminating arbitrary THC caps that had been put into law by the Charlotte’s Web bill. Following the Right to Try Act, an initiative known as Amendment 2 was passed to expand the list of qualifying conditions that were allowed to take medical cannabis.
SB 8-A was passed in 2017, further expanding on the initiatives already in place. Notable parts of this bill include the elimination of the 90-day waiting period between a patient’s initial visit and the start of their medical cannabis card application. Like SB 1052, SB 8-A allows for low or high THC cannabis to be prescribed by a certifying physician for medical use. Residency requirements were also expanded under this bill.
If you would like to look at the full senate bill 8-A, you can read it here.
If you would like to read the smokables senate bill, read it here.
Sources:
2017A Bill Summaries
Senate Bill 1030 (2014)
Florida Senate Bill 8-A’s Effect on Physicians’ Medical Marijuana Practices
2016 Florida Amendment 2
Senate Bill 8-A