New budget provisions raise questions about Kentucky’s medical cannabis launch

The two sentences inserted by senators came up for discussion this week as House and Senate leaders met in public as part of negotiations to hammer out a final version of the state’s next budget.

The Senate’s version states that no funds for the Office of Medical Cannabis would become available without peer reviewed, published research showing “conclusive evidence as to the efficacy of medical cannabis for the persistent reduction of symptoms of diseases and conditions.”

“We just want to make sure that we have research that’s coming out that’s appropriate to fund this thing,” Republican Sen. Chris McDaniel. “While we’re not stripping the funding, we’re waiting on data that tells us this is effective, and so we’re just putting a quick pause on that to make sure we have the appropriate information.”

McDaniel went on to say he doesn’t anticipate the new language holding up medical marijuana in the state, as long as proponents can produce enough evidence.

Republican Rep. Jason Nemes, a leading supporter of legalizing medical cannabis in Kentucky, said afterward that he intended to make the case to keep the Senate language out of the final version of the spending plan.

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