§ 21-28.6-6 - Administration of regulations.
SECTION 21-28.6-6
§ 21-28.6-6 Administration of regulations.– (a) The department shall issue registry identification cards to qualifyingpatients who submit the following, in accordance with the department'sregulations:
(1) Written certification as defined in § 21-28.6-3(14)of this chapter;
(2) Application or renewal fee;
(3) Name, address, and date of birth of the qualifyingpatient; provided, however, that if the patient is homeless, no address isrequired;
(4) Name, address, and telephone number of the qualifyingpatient's practitioner; and
(5) Name, address, and date of birth of each primarycaregiver of the qualifying patient, if any.
(b) The department shall not issue a registry identificationcard to a qualifying patient under the age of eighteen (18) unless:
(1) The qualifying patient's practitioner has explained thepotential risks and benefits of the medical use of marijuana to the qualifyingpatient and to a parent, guardian or person having legal custody of thequalifying patient; and
(2) A parent, guardian or person having legal custodyconsents in writing to:
(i) Allow the qualifying patient's medical use of marijuana;
(ii) Serve as one of the qualifying patient's primarycaregivers; and
(iii) Control the acquisition of the marijuana, the dosage,and the frequency of the medical use of marijuana by the qualifying patient.
(c) The department shall verify the information contained inan application or renewal submitted pursuant to this section, and shall approveor deny an application or renewal within fifteen (15) days of receiving it. Thedepartment may deny an application or renewal only if the applicant did notprovide the information required pursuant to this section, or if the departmentdetermines that the information provided was falsified. Rejection of anapplication or renewal is considered a final department action, subject tojudicial review. Jurisdiction and venue for judicial review are vested in thesuperior court.
(d) The department shall issue a registry identification cardto each primary caregiver, if any, who is named in a qualifying patient'sapproved application, up to a maximum of two (2) primary caregivers perqualifying patient. A person may not serve as a primary caregiver if he or shehas a felony drug conviction, unless the department waives this restriction inrespect to a specific individual at the department's discretion. Additionally,the department shall allow the person to serve as a primary caregiver if thedepartment determines that the offense was for conduct that occurred prior tothe enactment of the Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical MarijuanaAct or that was prosecuted by an authority other than the state of Rhode Islandand for which the Edward O. Hawkins and Thomas C. Slater Medical Marijuana Actwould otherwise have prevented a conviction.
(e) The department shall issue registry identification cardswithin five (5) days of approving an application or renewal, which shall expiretwo (2) years after the date of issuance. Registry identification cards shallcontain:
(1) The date of issuance and expiration date of the registryidentification card;
(2) A random registry identification number; and
(3) A photograph; and
(4) Any additional information as required by regulation orthe department.
(f) Persons issued registry identification cards shall besubject to the following:
(1) A qualifying patient who has been issued a registryidentification card shall notify the department of any change in the qualifyingpatient's name, address, or primary caregiver; or if the qualifying patientceases to have his or her debilitating medical condition, within ten (10) daysof such change.
(2) A registered qualifying patient who fails to notify thedepartment of any of these changes is responsible for a civil infraction,punishable by a fine of no more than one hundred fifty dollars ($150). If theperson has ceased to suffer from a debilitating medical condition, the cardshall be deemed null and void and the person shall be liable for any otherpenalties that may apply to the person's nonmedical use of marijuana.
(3) A registered primary caregiver, principal officer, boardmember, employee, volunteer, or agent of a compassion center shall notify thedepartment of any change in his or her name or address within ten (10) days ofsuch change. A primary caregiver, principal officer, board member, employee,volunteer, or agent of a compassion center who fails to notify the departmentof any of these changes is responsible for a civil infraction, punishable by afine of no more than one hundred fifty dollars ($150).
(4) When a qualifying patient or primary caregiver notifiesthe department of any changes listed in this subsection, the department shallissue the registered qualifying patient and each primary caregiver a newregistry identification card within ten (10) days of receiving the updatedinformation and a ten dollar ($10.00) fee. When a principal officer, boardmember, employee, volunteer, or agent of a compassion center notifies thedepartment of any changes listed in this subsection, the department shall issuethe cardholder a new registry identification card within ten (10) days ofreceiving the updated information and a ten dollar ($10.00) fee.
(5) When a qualifying patient who possesses a registryidentification card changes his or her primary caregiver, the department shallnotify the primary caregiver within ten (10) days. The primary caregiver'sprotections as provided in this chapter as to that patient shall expire ten(10) days after notification by the department.
(6) If a cardholder loses his or her registry identificationcard, he or she shall notify the department and submit a ten dollar ($10.00)fee within ten (10) days of losing the card. Within five (5) days, thedepartment shall issue a new registry identification card with new randomidentification number.
(7) If a cardholder willfully violates any provision of thischapter as determined by the department, his or her registry identificationcard may be revoked.
(g) Possession of, or application for, a registryidentification card shall not constitute probable cause or reasonablesuspicion, nor shall it be used to support the search of the person or propertyof the person possessing or applying for the registry identification card, orotherwise subject the person or property of the person to inspection by anygovernmental agency.
(h) Applications and supporting information submitted byqualifying patients, including information regarding their primary caregiversand practitioners, are confidential and protected under the federal HealthInsurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996.
(2) The department shall maintain a confidential list of thepersons to whom the department has issued registry identification cards.Individual names and other identifying information on the list shall beconfidential, exempt from the provisions of Rhode Island Access to PublicInformation, chapter 2 of title 38, and not subject to disclosure, except toauthorized employees of the department as necessary to perform official dutiesof the department.
(i) The department shall verify to law enforcement personnelwhether a registry identification card is valid solely by confirming the randomregistry identification number.
(j) It shall be a crime, punishable by up to one hundredeighty (180) days in jail and a one thousand dollar ($1,000) fine, for anyperson, including an employee or official of the department or another stateagency or local government, to breach the confidentiality of informationobtained pursuant to this chapter. Notwithstanding this provision, thedepartment employees may notify law enforcement about falsified or fraudulentinformation submitted to the department.
(k) On or before January 1 of each odd numbered year, thedepartment shall report to the House Committee on Health, Education and Welfareand to the Senate Committee on Health and Human Services on the use ofmarijuana for symptom relief. The report shall provide:
(1) The number of applications for registry identificationcards, the number of qualifying patients and primary caregivers approved, thenature of the debilitating medical conditions of the qualifying patients, thenumber of registry identification cards revoked, and the number ofpractitioners providing written certification for qualifying patients;
(2) An evaluation of the costs permitting the use ofmarijuana for symptom relief, including any costs to law enforcement agenciesand costs of any litigation;
(3) Statistics regarding the number of marijuana-relatedprosecutions against registered patients and caregivers, and an analysis of thefacts underlying those prosecutions;
(4) Statistics regarding the number of prosecutions againstphysicians for violations of this chapter; and
(5) Whether the United States Food and Drug Administrationhas altered its position regarding the use of marijuana for medical purposes orhas approved alternative delivery systems for marijuana.
(6) The application for qualifying patients' registryidentification card shall include a question asking whether the patient wouldlike the department to notify him or her of any clinical studies aboutmarijuana's risk or efficacy. The department shall inform those patients whoanswer in the affirmative of any such studies it is notified of, that will beconducted in Rhode Island. The department may also notify those patients ofmedical studies conducted outside of Rhode Island.