SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) - The Latest on access by nonresidents to New Mexico’s medical marijuana program (all times local):
7:50 p.m.
A spokeswoman for New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham says state health officials hope to block a new court order that would open the state’s medical marijuana program to out-of-state residents while it appeals the decision.
Lujan Grisham spokeswoman Nora Sackett said Monday in a statement that the state will seek a court stay to avoid issuing medical marijuana cards to patients outside the state as litigation proceeds.
The governor’s office and state health officials say a residency requirement for medical marijuana patients was unintentionally deleted from state statute this year amid other reforms to the program.
A district court judge says the state must abide by a law that clearly allows nonresidents to apply for medical marijuana enrollment cards, and declined to reconsider that decision on Monday.
6:20 p.m.
A state district court judge is standing by his initial decision to allow access to New Mexico’s medical cannabis program by people who live outside the state.
Judge Bryan Biedscheid said Monday that recent changes to New Mexico’s medical marijuana statute clearly allow nonresidents to enroll for treatment of qualified medical conditions with cannabis.
Medical Cannabis Program Manager Kenny Vigil said the state will appeal the judge’s final decision to a higher court and declined to say whether the state would issue medical marijuana cards to out-of-state residents.
Biedscheid declined a motion aimed at holding Vigil in contempt of court for not issuing medical marijuana cards to out-of-state residents.
Medical cannabis entrepreneur Duke Rodriguez of Ultra Health says the decision marks progress toward a more uniform national system for access to medical marijuana that transcends state boundaries.
Texas limits the psychoactive ingredient THC in its medical marijuana, and dispensaries are sparse in many areas where New Mexico borders Arizona.
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1 p.m.
A state district court judge is weighing whether New Mexico should open its medical marijuana program to routine access by people who live outside the state.
A court hearing was scheduled Monday that could determine whether residents of Texas, Arizona and beyond can participate in New Mexico’s medical cannabis program.
The state Department of Health has appealed an initial court decision that would allow nonresidents to fill prescriptions for marijuana.
Medical marijuana dispenser Ultra Health says changes to the state statute this year allow any person to qualify for medical marijuana based on a valid medical condition.
The administration of Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham says that change was an unintentional drafting error.
Medical marijuana cards have issued to three out-of-state residents who sued the Health Department for access.
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