MJBiz - November/December 2023 - 68

Sera is hopeful that rescheduling could
warm skeptical physicians' attitudes
toward cannabis.
" Acknowledging cannabis as medicine
is a big step forward in reducing the
stigma associated with cannabis, "
Sera said. " Whether that means that
physicians or other prescribers will be
more comfortable recommending non(FDA)-approved
cannabis products, I
don't know. But I do think that if this
happens, it will mean that prescribers
will be more comfortable talking
to patients about cannabis and the
potential benefi ts and the potential
risks of using it, whether or not they're
actually prescribing medications. "
That's a good thing, Sera said,
because the public is hungry for
information about medical marijuana,
but " many medical providers aren't
knowledgeable or comfortable with
having those conversations. "
Rescheduling, she added, would
motivate medical providers to become
more knowledgeable about medical
marijuana so that they can have
informed discussions with patients and
" participate in shared decision making
about cannabis and its medical value. "
INSURANCE GOAL
If marijuana is moved to Schedule 3,
FDA-approved marijuana products will
become eligible for insurance coverage,
Dentons attorney Berlin noted.
" Insurance will cover FDA-approved
drugs, but it will not cover non-FDAapproved
drugs, " he added.
That said, there are at least six
states that explicitly allow workers'
compensation reimbursement for
medical marijuana, according to
the American Academy of Actuaries:
Connecticut, Minnesota, New
Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico
and New York.
The organization also reported
that in 14 states, insurance carriers
aren't required to reimburse an
injured worker for medical marijuana,
which leaves open the possibility that
Rescheduling cannabis might increase plant-based scientifi c research. Photo by Matthew Staver
insurance companies could voluntarily
reimburse MMJ costs. Some states,
such as Massachusetts, outright
prohibit insurance coverage for
medical marijuana.
Julie Schum, a partner with the
law fi rm Quintairos, Prieto, Wood &
Boyer, where she focuses on workers'
comp and cannabis practices, told
PropertyCasualty360, an insurance
industry trade publication, that
insurers might fi nd that covering
medical marijuana is more costeffective
than covering opiates.
In 2022, more than 30% of workers'
comp claims had at least one opiate
68 November-December 2023 | MJBizMagazine
prescription-and 27% had more than
one, according to the Centers for
Disease Control and Prevention.
" I had a case when the MSA
(Medical Savings Account) was
$550,000. We transitioned the person
to medical cannabis and the MSA
dropped to $100,000, " Schum told
PropertyCasualty360. MSAs are private
companies that the federal government
pays to administer Medicare and
Medicaid benefi ts. " We upped the
settlement by roughly $50,000 to
account for the cost of cannabis for
the rest of their life. So, $150,000 as
opposed to $550,000. "

MJBiz - November/December 2023

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