Court victory grants greater access for patients to engage in the Medical Cannabis Program

(Albuquerque) – New Mexico District Court Judge Mattew J. Wilson issued a Writ of Mandamus on May 3, 2021, effectively expanding eligibility for thousands of reciprocal cannabis patients in New Mexico’s Medical Cannabis Program.

The writ, filed by Ultra Health, New Mexico’s #1 Cannabis Company, contends that the New Mexico Department of Health (NMDOH) promulgated a rule that was not consistent with the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act (LECUA), the Medical Cannabis Program’s enabling legislation.

“[NMDOH] owes a ministerial duty to allow the registration of individuals into the New Mexico cannabis program who hold proof of authorization to participate in the medical cannabis program of another state of the United States, the District of Columbia, a territory or commonwealth of the United States or a New Mexico Indian nation, tribe, or pueblo,” Judge Wilson wrote in his ruling. “[NMDOH] cannot act contrary to statutory authority and cannot create a rule or regulation that is not in harmony with its statutory authority.”

“[NMDOH has] enacted a Rule that exceeds its statutory authority and has created policy not in consonance with the LECUA,” Judge Wilson continued. 

The former NMDOH rule essentially disqualified more than 5,000 individuals who were duly enrolled as reciprocal participants under the language in LECUA, according to information provided in an Inspections of Public Records Request. 

Now, Judge Wilson’s ruling invalidates the NMDOH rule and commands NMDOH to do the following:

• Allow Licensed Cannabis Producers to authorize and sell cannabis to reciprocal patients whose government-issued identification and proof of medical cannabis program authorizations are issued by different jurisdictions or the same jurisdiction;
• Allow Licensed Cannabis Producers to authorize and sell medical cannabis to New Mexico residents who enroll in the medical cannabis program as reciprocal patients;
• Allow Licensed Cannabis Producers to authorize and sell medical cannabis to reciprocal patients who present a valid proof of authorization, including those reciprocal patients who present a California physician’s authorization as their proof of authorization;
• Reauthorize and re-enroll any reciprocal patient removed from the program when the reason for the reciprocal participant’s removal was a mismatch between the reciprocal participant’s state-of-residency and state-of-authorization, or in the case of California-authorized reciprocal participants, the reciprocal participant did not produce a California issued cannabis program card as proof of authorization to participate in the California medical cannabis program: or, when the patient was dis-enrolled because he or she is a New Mexico resident and was enrolled as a reciprocal patient;
• Permit all Licensed Cannabis Producers to authorize and sell medical cannabis to reciprocal patients who meet the definition of “reciprocal participant” under the LECUA and the Respondents’ original June 23, 2020, rule; and
• Refrain from any further enforcement of the March 23, 2021, Rule.