Alaska Board Proposes Regulation Project for Providing Safe Medical Marijuana

January 13, 2011 2:19 pm Topics: Medical marijuana

The Alaska Board of Pharmacy is proposing a regulation project to provide a safe means of medical marijuana to Alaska residents. According to Board Chair Richard Holm, RPh, this will require establishing a safe, clean source of marijuana grown within the state, creating quality control measures to scrutinize the product, providing medical marijuana in a pharmacy by prescription, and tracking the recipients. When these objectives are met, pharmacists could then feel safe and compliant dispensing.

The Board envisions the following: Availability would be realized through licensed, approved growers within Alaska. Growers would be required to be licensed by the Alaska Board of Pharmacy, obtain a manufacturer’s license, obtain a wholesale drug license, provide security as set forth by state and federal law, and provide record keeping including quantities and weights as set forth by state and federal law.

According to the Alaska Supreme Court and the Medical Marijuana Initiative, there currently is no requirement for marijuana to be prescribed. There are also no provisions for it to be legally purchased, leaving growing the only option. Further, the medical marijuana statutes do not negate the criminal liability found in Title 11, although they do provide an affirmative defense for the patient, the caregiver, and the prescriber in the event of criminal prosecution.

Board members are introducing this project and the statutory changes deemed necessary to sympathetic legislators in anticipation of the legislative session, set to begin January 18. More information, including details about the proposed legislative changes, is available in the January 2011 Alaska Board of Pharmacy Newsletter (PDF).