In a groundbreaking decision, the New Jersey Superior Court decided the outcome of the confusing dispute between federal and state medical marijuana laws when it comes to paying for medical marijuana as a workers’ compensation benefit. In Hager v. M&K Construction, A-0102-18T3 (App. Div. January 13, 2020), the court held that the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA), 21 USC §841, does not preempt the NJ Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act (MMA), NJSA 24:61-1 to 29.
The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled in favor of medical cannabis patients Tuesday, voting unanimously that a construction company must pay for an injured employee’s medical cannabis bills.
The decision upheld an appellate ruling from last January that found an employer to be responsible for covering the monthly bill for medical marijuana used by a former employee to treat an injury suffered on the job in 2001.
Last month, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy signed three bills making it official: marijuana will soon be growing legally in the gardens of the Garden State for anyone over 21 to enjoy. The bills follow through on a marijuana legalization ballot initiative that New Jerseyans approved overwhelmingly last year. New Jersey is now one of a dozen states, plus the District of Columbia, which have let loose the magic dragon — and more states, like Virginia, may be on the way.
Rahi Abouk is a health economics professor, and director of the Cannabis Research Institute, at William Paterson University. Abouk is also the lead author of this recent study, titled "Does Marijuana Legalization Affect Work Capacity? Evidence from Workers' Compensation Benefit", which is published in the National Bureau of Economic Research.
The study focuses on the impact of state recreational marijuana laws on workers' compensation claims among adults between the ages of 40-62.
New Jersey lawmakers took another step toward making medical marijuana expenses eligible for workers' compensation and some other insurance coverage Monday.
The state Assembly appropriations committee advanced a bill (A1708) that requires workers' compensation and personal injury protection (PIP) auto insurance benefits to cover medical marijuana under certain circumstances. The person must be a patient enrolled in the state’s medical marijuana program.
Like New Jersey’s law, the Pennsylvania MMA was enacted to decriminalize the possession of a certain amount of marijuana for medical use by qualified patients. This runs afoul of the federal Controlled Substance Act, which defines marijuana in the strictest “Schedule 1” category, making the “manufacture, distribution, or possession” of marijuana a felony.
Two recent developments may lead to New Jersey employers being required to reimburse the cost of medical marijuana for workers’ compensation recipients. In a case of first impression, New Jersey’s Appellate Division, in Vincent Hager v. M&K Construction, affirmed a July 2018 order handed down by a workers’ compensation judge requiring an employer to reimburse the cost of medical marijuana used to treat pain resulting from a workplace injury.
In November, we wrote about a lawsuit filed against Amazon by a New Jersey man claiming he was wrongfully terminated due to a failed marijuana drug test despite being a patient in the state’s medical marijuana program. Now, New Jersey state lawmakers have advanced a bill that would require workers’ compensation to cover medical marijuana.
The state Assembly committee on financial institutions advanced the two bills, but the state Senate has yet to take up either.
The first (A377) protects insurance companies and their employees from retaliation by state or local government if they engage with marijuana-related businesses. The bill cleared committee 11-1 with one abstention.