Amends and adds to existing law to authorize the possession, transportation, and use of cannabis for medical purposes and to provide that marijuana and tetrahydrocannabinols or synthetic equivalents are Schedule II controlled substances.

This legislation would provide for a regulated system of medically recommended cannabis and would move cannabis from a schedule 1 to a schedule 2 controlled substance under Idaho code. Patients who are 21 or older with certain defined diagnoses, including cancer, ALS, AIDS, wasting syndrome, Crohn’s disease, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, debilitating seizures, and terminal illness, would be eligible to be approved by a qualifying medical practitioner to apply for a medical cannabis card. Medical cannabis cards would be valid for the period recommended by the medical practitioner, up to a maximum of one year, upon which a renewal must be sought. Qualifying medical practitioners would be those practitioners that are currently authorized to prescribe Schedule 2 controlled substances in Idaho. Upon receipt of a medical cannabis card and a recommendation from a qualifying medical practitioner, the cardholder could then possess, in limited quantities, cannabis. All cannabis must be in measured dosage form, wherein the package (which must be blister-seal or tamper-evident) indicatestheamountofTHCandCBDcontainedtherein. Ifauthorizedbyamedicalpractitioner,upto30grams of unprocessed cannabis flower may be possessed containing up to 22% THC, but no smoking of cannabis in public or in view of the public is permitted. Should a medical cannabis cardholder sell or provide their cannabis to a non-cardholder, they would be guilty of a criminal offense under existing law, and upon court conviction, the Department of Health and Welfare would permanently revoke the medical cannabis card. No growing, selling, or production of cannabis in Idaho would be permitted under this legislation.