Can an Injured Worker Receive Medicinal Medical Marijuana in Minnesota?

An injured worker may receive medicinal or medical marijuana in Minnesota if the treatment is reasonable, necessary, and causally related to the work injury.  Currently (in 2018), there is no specific statute or rule that limits medical marijuana for work-related injuries.  As such, to be entitled to this type of treatment, you must be appropriate prescribed medicinal medical marijuana under Minnesota law and the treatment needs to be reasonable, necessary and causally related to your Minnesota work related injury. 

Patients in Minnesota must be diagnosed with a severe, debilitating, or life threatening medical condition to be afforded legal protection under the Minnesota Medical Marijuana Law.  This includes terminal illness with a life expectancy of less than one-year, intractable pain/chronic pain, post-traumatic stress disorder, seizures, etc.

As of November 2017, twenty-nine US states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Guam authorize medical use of cannabis, although not all programs are operational. An additional 17 states have limited programs that authorize use of high cannabidiol/low delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) cannabis formulations for treatment of childhood epilepsy, especially refractory seizures.

Even though medical marijuana is not illegal in Minnesota, if prescribed appropriately, it is still against Federal law and some issues may still arise. It’s important to understand your legal rights under Minnesota worker’ compensation law in this new area of law. Our Minnesota work comp lawyers offer free consultations. Call Jerry Sisk today.