JACKSONVILLE, Fla.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--To date, 25 states and Washington, D.C. have legalized medical marijuana and in upcoming U.S. elections, several more states will be considering medical marijuana initiatives. Kevin Glennon, RN, VP of Operations, Home Health, Clinical and Quality Assurance Programs at One Call Care Management (“One Call”), discussed the dichotomy that exists between state and federal regulations and how it creates conflicting agendas around the use of medical marijuana in workers’ compensation (WC). The session, “The Debate Continues: Medical Marijuana in Workers’ Compensation,” was showcased at the Chicagoland Risk Forum, October 24-25, where risk management professionals hoped to get answers on whether employers and their WC insurers should anticipate covering claims for medical marijuana in the near future.
Glennon first addressed clinical aspects of the controversy: “Under the Controlled Substance Act (CSA) of 1970, marijuana is illegal at the federal level. However, more and more states are legalizing it for various medical purposes. Chief among them is the treatment of chronic pain, especially when patients have been unresponsive to other therapies,” Glennon noted. “With the high rate of addiction to opioid painkillers, medical marijuana is viewed as a possible alternative. However, reclassification of marijuana under the CSA is required before large-scale clinical studies can confirm its therapeutic benefits.”
Amidst contradictory directives, many WC payers are choosing to categorically deny coverage of medical marijuana. Payers are well within legal and medical parameters to do so, especially since medical marijuana is not currently included in any WC treatment guidelines—such as the Official Disability Guidelines (ODG) and the American College of Occupational & Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) practices guidelines—which are considered the gold standards for treatment of occupational injuries.
“Come this November, more states have ballot measures to legalize medical marijuana,” added Glennon. “There is also pending legislation at the federal level; the CARERS Act proposed by Senators Paul, Booker and Gillibrand could reschedule marijuana from a Schedule I to Schedule II substance, making it legal for medical use and opening up broader opportunities for clinical trials.”
The CARERS (Compassionate Access, Research Expansion and Respect States) Act is currently stalled in the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee. However, public sentiment may cause the tides to shift, especially in light of fall elections. According to a June 2016 Quinnipiac University Poll, 89% of Americans support legalizing medical marijuana for adult use.1 In addition, both presidential candidates Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump support legalization of medical marijuana, as reported by a July article on Fortune.com.2
Changes to Federal and state laws, new case law, and clinical findings on the efficacy of medical marijuana will continue to shape this debate. Risk management professions should continue to monitor these factors, as they will have ongoing ramifications for the industry and could forecast potential reclassification in the future. One Call Home Health + Complex Care serves as an expert resource on such issues, providing clinical expertise and helping adjusters and nurse case managers to coordinate key services for their most severe, complex and catastrophic claims. For more information about One Call's services, contact Kevin Glennon at 800-700-9393.
About One Call Care Management
One Call is the nation’s leading provider of specialized solutions to the workers’ compensation industry. One Call’s solutions enable faster, more efficient and more cost-effective claims resolution with a focus on injured workers’ needs across the continuum of care. One Call provides reliable, consistent connections to care with expertise in high end diagnostics, physical therapy and transportation services, post-discharge home care and durable medical equipment, dental and doctor specialty services, complex care management, and the language services required for today’s multicultural workforce. For more information, visit www.onecallcm.com.
1 Quinnipiac University. (June 6, 2016). “Allow Marijuana for Vets with PTSD, US. Voters Say 10-1, Quinnipiac University National Polls Find, Slim Majority Says Legalize Marijuana in General.” https://poll.qu.edu/national/release-detail?ReleaseID=2354
2 Chauncey L. Alcorn. (July 12, 2016). “If There’s One Issue Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump Agree on, It’s This.” Fortune.com, http://fortune.com/2016/07/12/hillary-clinton-donald-trump-marijuana/
