GA Code § 31-2A-18 (2021)
2021 Georgia Code|Title 31 - Health|Chapter 2A - Department of Public Health|Article 1 - General Provisions|§ 31-2A-18. Establishment of the Low Thc Oil Patient Registry; Definitions; Purpose; Registration Cards; Semiannual Reports; Waiver Forms; Annual Review and Recommendations

  As used in this Code section, the term:   "Board" means the Georgia Composite Medical Board.   "Caregiver" means the parent, guardian, or legal custodian of an individual who is less than 18 years of age or the legal guardian of an adult.   "Condition" means:   Cancer, when such disease is diagnosed as end stage or the treatment produces related wasting illness or recalcitrant nausea and vomiting;   Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, when such disease is diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Seizure disorders related to a diagnosis of epilepsy or trauma related head injuries;   Multiple sclerosis, when such disease is diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Crohn's disease;   Mitochondrial disease;   Parkinson's disease, when such disease is diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Sickle cell disease, when such disease is diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Tourette's syndrome, when such syndrome is diagnosed as severe;   Autism spectrum disorder, when such disorder is diagnosed for a patient who is at least 18 years of age, or severe autism, when diagnosed for a patient who is less than 18 years of age;   Epidermolysis bullosa;   Alzheimer's disease, when such disease is diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Acquired immune deficiency syndrome, when such syndrome is diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Peripheral neuropathy, when such symptoms are diagnosed as severe or end stage;   Post-traumatic stress disorder resulting from direct exposure to or the witnessing of a trauma for a patient who is at least 18 years of age; or   Intractable pain.     "Department" means the Department of Public Health.   "Intractable pain" means pain that has a cause that cannot be removed and for which, according to generally accepted medical practice, the full range of pain management modalities appropriate for the patient has been used for a period of at least six months without adequate results or with intolerable side effects.   "Low THC oil" shall have the same meaning as set forth in Code Section 16-12-190.   "Physician" means an individual licensed to practice medicine pursuant to Article 2 of Chapter 34 of Title 43.   "Registry" means the Low THC Oil Patient Registry.     There is established within the department the Low THC Oil Patient Registry.   The purpose of the registry is to provide a registration of individuals and caregivers who have been issued registration cards. The department shall establish procedures and promulgate rules and regulations for the establishment and operation of the registration process and dispensing of registry cards to individuals and caregivers.   The department shall issue a registration card to individuals who have been certified to the department by his or her physician as being diagnosed with a condition or is an inpatient or outpatient in a hospice program and have been authorized by such physician to use low THC oil as treatment. The department shall issue a registration card to a caregiver when the circumstances warrant the issuance of such card.The board shall establish procedures and promulgate rules and regulations to assist physicians in providing required uniform information relating to certification and any other matter relating to the issuance of certifications.In promulgating such rules and regulations, the board shall require that physicians have a doctor-patient relationship when certifying an individual as needing low THC oil and physicians shall be required to be treating such individual for the specific condition requiring such treatment or be treating such individual in a hospice program.A physician shall seek and review information about a patient from the prescription drug monitoring program data base established pursuant to Code Section 16-13-57 prior to certifying such patient to the department as being diagnosed with a specific condition that requires the use of low THC oil as treatment.   The board shall require physicians to issue semiannual reports to the board.Such reports shall require physicians to provide information, including, but not limited to, dosages recommended for a particular condition, patient clinical responses, levels of tetrahydrocannabinol or tetrahydrocannabinolic acid present in test results, compliance, responses to treatment, side effects, and drug interactions.Such reports shall be used for research purposes to determine the efficacy of the use of low THC oil as a treatment for conditions.   Information received and records kept by the department for purposes of administering this Code section shall be confidential; provided, however, that such information shall be disclosed, subject to the provisions of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191, and any regulations promulgated thereunder:   Upon written request of an individual or caregiver registered pursuant to this Code section for information related to the individual or his or her caregiver;   To peace officers and prosecuting attorneys for the purpose of:   Verifying that an individual in possession of a registration card is registered pursuant to this Code section; or   Determining that an individual in possession of low THC oil is registered pursuant to this Code section; and     To government entities and other entities for statistical, research, educational, instructional, drug abuse prevention, or grant application purposes after removing all personal identifiers from the health information and removing all information that could be used to identify prescribers.     The board shall develop a waiver form that will advise that the use of cannabinoids and THC containing products have not been approved by the FDA and the clinical benefits are unknown and may cause harm. Any patient or caregiver shall sign such waiver prior to his or her approval for registration.   The board, in coordination with the Department of Public Health, shall annually review the conditions included in paragraph (3) of subsection (a) of this Code section and recommend additional conditions that have been shown through medical research to be effectively treated with low THC oil. Such recommendations shall include recommended dosages for a particular condition, patient responses to treatment with respect to the particular condition, and drug interactions with other drugs commonly taken by patients with the particular condition.Such recommendations shall be made jointly by the board and the Department of Public Health to the General Assembly no later than December 1 of each year.     (Code 1981, §31-2A-18, enacted by Ga. L. 2015, p. 49, § 2-1/HB 1; Ga. L. 2017, p. 611, § 2/SB 16; Ga. L. 2017, p. 774, § 31/HB 323; Ga. L. 2018, p. 148, § 2/HB 65; Ga. L. 2019, p. 43, § 6/HB 324; Ga. L. 2021, p. 782, § 2A/SB 46.)    The 2017 amendments.  The first 2017 amendment, effective July 1, 2017, substituted "disease is diagnosed as" for "diagnosis is" throughout paragraph (a)(3); substituted "illness or" for "illness," in subparagraph (a)(3)(A); inserted "a" in subparagraph (a)(3)(C); deleted "or" at the end of subparagraph (a)(3)(G); substituted a semicolon for a period at the end of subparagraph (a)(3)(H); added subparagraphs (a)(3)(I) through (a)(3)(N); deleted the former third and fourth sentences in subsection (c), which read: "Only individuals residing in this state for at least one year or a child born in this state less than one year old shall be eligible for registration under this Code section. Nothing in this Code section shall apply to any Georgia residents living temporarily in another state for the purpose of securing THC oil for treatment of any condition under this Code section."; in subsection (d), in the first sentence, substituted "individuals who have" for "individuals and caregivers as soon as practicable but no later than September 1, 2015, when an individual has" near the beginning, inserted "or is an inpatient or outpatient in a hospice program", substituted "have been authorized" for "has been authorized" near the middle, and deleted "for such condition" following "as treatment" at the end, added the second sentence, and, in the fourth sentence, substituted "treating such individual" for "treating an individual" near the middle, and added "or be treating such individual in a hospice program" at the end; in subsection (e), substituted "semiannual" for "quarterly" in the first sentence, in the second sentence, inserted "patient" and inserted "levels of tetrahydrocannabinol or tetrahydrocannabinolic acid present in test results,". The second 2017 amendment, effective May 9, 2017, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, revised punctuation in subparagraph (a)(3)(A).    The 2018 amendment,  effective July 1, 2018, in subsection (a), deleted "or" at the end of subparagraph (a)(3)(M), substituted a semicolon for a period at the end of subparagraph (a)(3)(N), added subparagraphs (a)(3)(O) and (a)(3)(P), added paragraph (a)(5), redesignated former paragraphs (a)(5) through (a)(7) as present paragraphs (a)(6) through (a)(8), respectively; and added subsection (h).    The 2019 amendment,  effective July 1, 2019, added the last sentence in subsection (d); added the last sentence in subsection (e); and, in subsection (h), inserted ", in coordination with the Department of Public Health," near the beginning of the first sentence and inserted "jointly by the board and the Department of Public Health" in the middle of the last sentence.    The 2021 amendment,  effective May 10, 2021, added ", subject to the provisions of the federal Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, P.L. 104-191, and any regulations promulgated thereunder" at the end of subsection (f); substituted "section for information related to the individual or his or her caregiver;" for "section; and" at the end of paragraph (f)(1); substituted "; and" for a period at the end of subparagraph (f)(2)(B); and added paragraph (f)(3).   Code Commission notes.   - Pursuant to Code Section 28-9-5, in 2017, a comma was deleted following "nausea" in subparagraph (a)(3)(A).   Editor's notes.   - Ga. L. 2015, p. 49, § 1-1/HB 1, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as the 'Haleigh's Hope Act.'"   Ga. L. 2019, p. 43, § 1/HB 324, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "This Act shall be known and may be cited as 'Georgia's Hope Act.'"   Ga. L. 2019, p. 43, § 2/HB 324, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "(a) The General Assembly finds that the establishment of the Low THC Oil Patient Registry in 2015 allows Georgia patients to possess low THC oil but provides no way to access low THC oil. The General Assembly finds that thousands of Georgians have serious medical conditions that can be improved by the medically approved use of cannabis and that the law should not stand between them and treatment necessary for life and health. The General Assembly finds that the purpose of this Act is to allow the legitimate use of medical cannabis for health care, including palliative care. The General Assembly finds that this Act does not in any way diminish this state's strong public policy and laws against illegal drug use, nor should it be deemed in any manner to advocate, authorize, promote, or legally or socially accept the use of marijuana for children or adults for any nonmedical use.   "(b) The General Assembly further finds that:   "(1) Low THC oil can offer significant medical benefits to patients;   "(2) Low THC oil can only be derived from the cannabis plant;   "(3) A carefully constructed system of in-state cultivation to benefit only those patients authorized by Georgia law and approved by their physician would benefit patients within the State of Georgia;   "(4) The State of Georgia is deeply opposed to any recreational or nonmedical use of marijuana, and any system to help patients access low THC oil should be as limited in scope as possible;   "(5) Business opportunities resulting from a system of in-state cultivation should be inclusive of minority, women, and veteran owned businesses;   "(6) Businesses resulting from this Act should include at least 20 percent participation by minority, women, and veteran owned businesses as licensees, suppliers, and partners of businesses licensed under this Act; and   "(7) The State of Georgia should encourage active participation by minority, women, and veteran owned businesses, as well as take any steps necessary to ensure there is no discrimination in the issuance of licenses or participation in business activities resulting from this Act."   Law reviews.   - For article on the 2015 enactment of this Code section, see 32 Ga. St. U. L. Rev. 153 (2015). For article on the 2019 amendment of this Code section, see 36 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 39 (2019).   RESEARCH REFERENCES   ALR.   - Propriety of employer's discharge of or failure to hire employee due to employee's use of medical marijuana, 57 A.L.R.6th 285.