Costa Rica: medical cannabis bill tabled

Supporters of the legalization of medical cannabis claim it could generate $1 billion in revenue per year. In this country where the’use and possession of small amounts of marijuana have been decriminalized, and some politicians are taking action and have introduced a bill on the subject.

Government regulation?

«If we choose to have the government regulate medical cannabis and industrial hemp, we could generate $48 million in the first year. Our estimate of 1 billion comes from tourism revenue and a more dynamic industry,» explains Gerald Murray, a member of the Partido Nueva Generacion and president of the «Movement for Medical Cannabis.».

Lawmakers who support this regulation of medical cannabis have no desire whatsoever to encourage the use of recreational cannabis. In their view, the government should establish a licensing system similar to that for pharmacies. Patients could then choose between traditional treatments and cannabis dispensaries.

On Tuesday, November 15, Gerald Murray filed a petition with the Supreme Electoral Tribunal requesting permission to collect a certain number of signatures in support of a referendum to legalize medical cannabis in Costa Rica. This petition was rejected by the TSE, which confirmed that the bill would indeed proceed to the Legislative Assembly. Gerald Murray suspects that certain lawmakers are under the influence of a private laboratory seeking to protect its interests in cannabis cultivation and testing.

This The bill proposes the issuance of 250 production licenses, 100 dispensary licenses, 100 cannabis social club licenses, and 5 laboratory licenses. Each license would cost $100,000 and be renewable every four years. The revenue from the issuance of these licenses is already estimated at $45.5 million.

In August, the Costa Rican Pharmacists' Commission had recognized the usefulness cannabinoids in medicine. This pharmacists’ conference opposed smoking cannabis but said it was open to other methods of administering cannabinoids (oral spray, capsules, vaporization).

In-fighting within the government

Congress President Antonio Alvarez Desanti, despite being a member of the Partido Liberacion Nacional (socialist), refuses to consider such a bill in Congress. In his view, only the idea of a government agency to distribute and regulate cannabis would be acceptable:  »I don’t like this bill because it would legalize cannabis cultivation and the cannabis industry in the country.» When asked about potential tax revenue for the government, he states that there are other solutions.

Yet, things are stirring within the government. Members of Congress from his own party, such as José Maria Figueres, want to emulate American models. And the Ministry of Health encourages and recognizes the positive effects of medical cannabis.