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Colorado Medical Marijuana Laws

In Colorado, patients diagnosed by a physician as having a debilitating medical condition, and who possess written prescription from their physician recommending the use of marijuana may resort to the use of medical marijuana.  Such patients who are registered with the state and issued an identification card may legally possess up to two ounces of marijuana or up to six marijuana plants.  Colo. Const. Art. XVIII, Section 14 deals with medical use of marijuana for persons suffering from debilitating medical conditions. 

 It is an affirmative defense to possession, manufacture or delivery that the offender is a patient or primary care-giver who is registered with the state for medical use of marijuana.  However, the patient and care-giver should use marijuana only for medical purposes and collectively possess marijuana within permissible limits.  This affirmative defense shall not exclude the assertion of any other defense where a patient or primary care-giver is charged with a violation of state law related to the patient’s medical use of marijuana.

A physician who under a bona fide physician-patient relationship advises the patient about the pros and cons of medical marijuana, or who provides a written documentation stating that the patient has a debilitating condition and may benefit from medical marijuana is not subject to criminal liability in the state.  However, no person is exempt from criminal liability if he/she possesses, manufactures, produces, uses, distributes, dispenses or transports marijuana for any use other than medical purposes. 

The Colorado state health agency shall create and maintain a confidential registry of patients who have applied for and are entitled to receive a registry identification card.  Applicants for marijuana registry identification have to pay a fee.  A patient can be placed on the state’s confidential registry for the medical use of marijuana only if he/she resides in Colorado.  For registration, the patient should submit the completed application form adopted by the state health agency.  Other details to be furnished are: a copy of the physician’s written documentation that the patient has a debilitating medical condition and may benefit from medical marijuana; name, address, date of birth, and social security number of the patient; name, address, and telephone number of the patient’s physician; and the name and address of the patient’s primary care-giver, if one is designated at the time of application.  After verifying the information received, the state health agency shall issue one serially numbered registry identification card to the patient within 35 days from the date of the application.  The identification card contains the patient’s name, address, date of birth, and social security number.  The card also contains the name and address of the patient’s primary care giver if any.  The validity of the identification card shall be one year from the date of issuance.  The state health agency it may notify the patient that his application is denied if it feels that the information furnished is falsified or does not support documents to show that the patient has a debilitating condition.  Such patients may not reapply for a period of six months following the date of the denial.

The patient should notify the state health agency if there is any change in the name, address, physician, or primary caregiver of the qualified patient.  Such notification should be made within ten days of any change.  The registry identification card should be returned to the sate health agency if the patient no longer has a debilitating medical condition. 
Relevant sections relating to the definition of “debilitating medical condition” are: 

Colo. Const. Art. XVIII, Section 14: Medical use of marijuana for persons suffering from debilitating medical conditions

 

(1) As used in this section, these terms are defined as follows:

“Debilitating medical condition” means:

(I) Cancer, glaucoma, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus, or acquired immune deficiency syndrome, or treatment for such conditions;

(II) A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition, or treatment for such conditions, which produces, for a specific patient, one or more of the following, and for which, in the professional opinion of the patient’s physician, such condition or conditions reasonably may be alleviated by the medical use of marijuana: cachexia; severe pain; severe nausea; seizures, including those that are characteristic of epilepsy; or persistent muscle spasms, including those that are characteristic of multiple sclerosis; or

(III) Any other medical condition, or treatment for such condition, approved by the state health agency, pursuant to its rule making authority or its approval of any petition submitted by a patient or physician as provided in this section.


Inside Colorado Medical Marijuana Laws