Amended  IN  Senate  July 11, 2017
Amended  IN  Senate  June 07, 2017
Amended  IN  Assembly  March 28, 2017

CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE— 2017–2018 REGULAR SESSION

Assembly Bill No. 845

Introduced by Assembly Member Wood

February 16, 2017

An act to add Section 11150.2 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to controlled substances, and declaring the urgency thereof, to take effect immediately.


LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


AB 845, as amended, Wood. Cannabidiol.
Existing law, the California Uniform Controlled Substances Act, classifies controlled substances into 5 designated schedules, with the most restrictive limitations generally placed on controlled substances classified in Schedule I, and the least restrictive limitations generally placed on controlled substances classified in Schedule V. Existing law places marijuana cannabis in Schedule I. Cannabidiol is a compound found in marijuana. cannabis.
Existing law restricts the prescription, furnishing, possession, sale, and use of controlled substances, including marijuana cannabis and synthetic cannabinoid compounds, and makes a violation of those laws a crime, except as specified.
This bill, if one of specified changes in federal law regarding the controlled substance cannabidiol occurs, would provide that a physician, pharmacist, or other authorized healing arts licensee who prescribes, furnishes, or dispenses a product composed of cannabidiol, in accordance with federal law, is in compliance with state law governing those acts. The bill would also provide that upon the effective date of one of those changes in federal law regarding cannabidiol, the prescription, furnishing, dispensing, transfer, possession, or use of that product in accordance with federal law is for a legitimate medical purpose and is authorized pursuant to state law.
This bill would declare that it is to take effect immediately as an urgency statute.
Vote: 2/3   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares that both children and adults with epilepsy are in desperate need of new treatment options and that cannabidiol is showing potential as one of these treatments. If federal laws prohibiting the prescription of medications composed of cannabidiol are repealed or if an exception from the general prohibition is enacted permitting the prescription of drugs composed of cannabidiol, patients should have rapid access to this treatment option. The availability of this new prescription medication is intended to augment, not to restrict or otherwise amend, other cannabinoid treatment modalities currently available under state law.

SEC. 2.

 Section 11150.2 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

11150.2.
 (a) Notwithstanding any other law, if cannabidiol is removed excluded from Schedule I of the federal Controlled Substances Act and placed on a schedule of the act other than Schedule I, or if a product composed of cannabidiol is approved by the federal Food and Drug Administration and either placed on a schedule of the act other than Schedule I, or exempted from one or more provisions of the act, so as to permit a physician, pharmacist, or other authorized healing arts licensee acting within his or her scope of practice, to prescribe, furnish, or dispense that product, the physician, pharmacist, or other authorized healing arts licensee who prescribes, furnishes, or dispenses that product in accordance with federal law shall be deemed to be in compliance with state law governing those acts.
(b) For purposes of this chapter, upon the effective date of one of the changes in federal law described in subdivision (a), notwithstanding any other state law, a product composed of cannabidiol may be prescribed, furnished, dispensed, transferred, possessed, or used in accordance with federal law and is authorized pursuant to state law.

SEC. 3.

 This act is an urgency statute necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health, or safety within the meaning of Article IV of the California Constitution and shall go into immediate effect. The facts constituting the necessity are:
In order to ensure that patients are able to obtain access to a new treatment modality as soon as federal law makes it available, it is necessary that this act take effect immediately.