WASHINGTON — No one should be too poor to buy pot if they live in Washington, at least if the marijuana is for a medical condition. That’s the conclusion of a new medical-marijuana law enacted in the nation’s capital.
The District of Columbia passed a law earlier this year that allows residents to legally obtain the drug for medical reasons. But it also includes a provision unlike the 14 other states with medical-marijuana laws, requiring the drug to be provided at a discount to poor residents who qualify. Who will get the reduced- price marijuana and how much it will cost, however, is still being worked out.
“Obviously because there’s no roadmap on how to do this, it may require some tweaking over time,” said David Catania, a D.C. councilman and the chairman of the city health committee that drafted the law. “We may, in fact, set an example for other states.”
The first round of regulations implementing the law is expected to be released Friday.
The law says that patients “unable to afford a sufficient supply of medical marijuana” will be able to purchase it “on a sliding scale.” Low-income patients will also get a discount on a required city registration fee.
Dispensaries, meanwhile, will have to devote some revenue to providing marijuana to needy patients.
