Maine governor delays implementation of medical marijuana regulations

Following the lead of a key legislative committee, Maine Gov. Paul LePage has halted implementation of regulations for the state’s medical marijuana market.

The rules would have gone into effect Thursday, but LePage delayed them until May so the Health and Human Services Committee can draft a new law implementing the changes, the Portland Press Herald reported.

Here’s what you need to know:

• The new rules would have been directed at caregivers, allowing for surprise inspections and closing a regulatory loophole under which cannabis processors have made and sold infused products.
• In December, the state health department said processors, labs and kitchens making infused cannabis products for caregivers were breaking state rules.
• If the regulations had gone through, they would have been the first changes to Maine’s MMJ program since 2011.
• The legislative committee is expected to work out ways to consolidate parts of the medical program with the recreational market, which remains on hold after voters approved it in 2016.
• Areas such as oversight, compliance, licensing, packaging, labeling, testing and regulatory control could all be combined, according to the health department.