Marijuana legislation

A recap of the medical marijuana-related bills filed by the state Legislature during the 91st General Assembly. All bills must be approved on the floor of both the House of Representatives and the Senate before being sent to Gov. Asa Hutchinson to sign into law. Any bill changing the Arkansas Medical Marijuana Amendment must be approved by a two-thirds majority in both chambers. All statuses are as of Monday morning:

HB1026 Pushes deadline for state agencies to publish marijuana regulations to May 8. Status: Signed into law as Act 4.

Buckle up, Arkansas: You’re legally allowed to deliver medical marijuana in your state.

The Arkansas Alcoholic Beverage Control Board just approved delivery for state-licensed dispensaries.

Of course, dispensary couriers can’t hop on your bike or car and roll out with the good shit. There are a few rules attached.

Arkansas' Medical Marijuana Commission has approved a final set of rules on how businesses can cultivate and sell the drug.

The rules approved Tuesday will now go up for public comment, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette (http://bit.ly/2kMoXCq ) reported. Lawmakers must adopt them no later than May 8. Commissioners are expected to hold a hearing March 31.

Dr. Ronda Henry-Tillman, the commission's chairman, said questions remain about who would educate patients and ensure safety.

"People who want it are thinking about the relief that it provides them," she said. "Others are thinking dollar signs and business plans, but ... the safety of that individual has to be considered as well."

 A new bill seeks to limit the way medical marijuana patients could consume the drug in Arkansas.

If passed, Senate Bill 333 would outlaw what are known as marijuana "edibles." Edibles provide a way to ingest the drug and feel the effects without having to smoke it.

Senator Gary Stubblefield's legislation bans "combining medical cannabis with food or drink," which is how the edibles are formed and used. It does provide for exceptions in cases where patients qualify.

This bill is one of two dozen filed this session, aiming to tweak or regulate the medical marijuana amendment passed by voters last November.

This bill follows another bill seeking to ban the smoking of medical marijuana.

Most state legislatures reconvene in early January, and by February they’re in full swing, moving some bills forward and killing others in committee. This year 27 state legislatures are considering bills pertaining to cannabis in some form. (Well, okay: 26. Mississippi had two medical marijuana bills, but they’re already dead.) Some states are pushing full adult-use legalization. Others are pulling back on medical legalization measures adopted by voters last November. We’ll keep tracking them as they live and die. Most state legislatures adjourn by early June. Stay tuned.

Misleadingly marketed as a legal and safe alternative to marijuana, synthetic cannabinoids have a variety of adverse health effects. A new review summarizes the clinical cases that have so far been linked to the use of the synthetic substances.