Tag Archives: Marijuana

by | March 13, 2015 · 9:55 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Update: “Marijuana: An Emerging Coverage Risk”

The federal government has greeted legalization by the states with benevolent indifference. The Controlled Substance Act categorizes marijuana as contraband for any purpose,medical marijuana including medical use, designating it a Schedule 1 drug along with heroin and LSD. The manufacture, distribution, or possession of marijuana remains a federal crime for which, if prosecuted, state legalization laws cannot be used as a defense.

The emerging legal marijuana economy will see explosive growth in the coming years. Insurers should be prepared to adopt policies that spell out coverage for legally grown marijuana plants and medical marijuana property. The cannabis industry is expected to grow to nearly $15 billion over the next four years. In states where manufacture, sale and use is legal for recreational purposes, legalization will have a profound impact on not only personal lines insurance, but also commercial coverage, workers’ comp, product liability, healthcare insurance and more.

Currently, 27 states have either decriminalized or legalized marijuana use in some form. Four states: Alaska, Colorado, Oregon and Washington, and the District of Columbia allow recreational use. In addition, recreational marijuana initiatives are expected to appear on the 2016 ballots in Arizona, California, Maine, Massachusetts and Nevada. According to a recent Gallop poll, 51% of Americans now support full legalization. In 2014, Oregonians voted to legalize marijuana by a 56 to 44% margin. More Oregonians voted to legalize cannabis than voted to retain their incumbent Democratic governor or senator in the same election.

For more: http://bit.ly/1Mybsbq

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by | February 3, 2015 · 9:09 am

Hospitality Industry Insurance Update: “Will Workers’ Comp Pay For Medical Pot For Back Pain?”

A workers’ compensation judge (WCJ) found Dr. Reeve didn’t prescribe medical marijuana and concluded that the pot program wasn’t reasonable and necessary medical care as required by workers’ compmedicalmarijuana…the appeals court had found the certification required under the Compassionate Use Act by a person licensed in New Mexico to prescribe and administer controlled substances is the functional equivalent of a prescription.

In a state where medical marijuana is legal, a recent court decision has reinforced a previous one regarding pot prescriptions under workers’ comp. 

Miguel Maez suffered injuries to his lumbar spine in February and March 2011 while working for Riley Industrial in New Mexico.

Maez received temporary disability benefits under workers’ comp. Dr. Anthony Reeve treated him for back pain starting in June 2011 and prescribed medication for pain management. He also referred Maez to another doctor for spinal injections.

During a test required for pain management patients, Maez tested positive for marijuana. Dr. Reeve told Maez that if he was going to continue to take marijuana, he needed to have a license for Dr. Reeve to continue administering other narcotics.

For more: http://bit.ly/1BSqcfS

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by | August 13, 2014 · 9:30 am

Hospitality Industry Management Update: “As Marijuana Becomes Legal in More States, How Should Employers Handle Positive Drug Tests?”

“…Hospitality employers also need to be aware of potential violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) associated with medical marijuana.  Employers with facilities in states that allow medical marijuana use may need to provide a reasonable accommodation under the ADA for employees with a valid doctor’s authorization. 042314_acuna_marijuana_640 For instance, the New York statute permitting medical marijuana use automatically classifies every individual who is considered a Certified Patient as disabled.  Therefore, New York employers must engage in an interactive process with the employee to determine whether they need to provide the employee with a reasonable accommodation…”

Due to the ever changing laws surrounding the legality of marijuana, many of our hospitality clients have recently asked us whether it is lawful to terminate an employee who has tested positive for marijuana.  The answer varies greatly depending on the state in which you are located.

States continue to pass legislation legalizing marijuana use for specific purposes.  On July 5, 2014, New York became the twenty-first state along with the District of Columbia to legalize marijuana use for certain medical conditions—joining Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Hawaii, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, and Vermont.  Two other states, Colorado and Washington, have legalized recreational marijuana use for individuals who are 21 years old or older, and Alaska and Oregon currently have similar legislation pending.

For more: http://bit.ly/1Bek1W8

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by | July 23, 2014 · 10:00 am

Hospitality Industry Management Update: “The Impact of Legal Marijuana on Employers” (With Video)

“…Marijuana possession and use remains illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act,mary jane but federal enforcement is curtailed in states that have sanctioned the use of medical marijuana. In some of these states, laws prohibit discrimination against qualified patients in employment decisions…”

Twenty states and the District of Columbia have passed a form of legislation that decriminalizes the use of marijuana for medical purposes, and Colorado and Washington have recently legalized the recreational use of the drug. While employers are under no legal obligation to allow marijuana use in the workplace, the drug’s legality leads to questions regarding an employer’s response to an employee who fails a drug test or admits to being a medical marijuana patient.

For more: http://bit.ly/WDC3kN

For a brief video with more information on how to handle these situations, check out the video below:

[vimeo https://vimeo.com/101528983 w=500&h=281]

Petra Risk Solutions’ Risk Management Director, Todd Seiders, offers a P3 Hospitality Risk Report – ‘Medical and Recreational Use of Marijuana and Employer Rights’. 

P3 (Petra Plus Process) is the Risk Management Division of Petra Risk Solutions – America ’s largest independent insurance brokerage devoted exclusively to the hospitality marketplace.

For more information on Petra and P3 visit petrarisksolutions.com or call 800.466.8951.

 

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by | April 24, 2014 · 8:57 am

Hospitality Industry Safety Update: “Safety Concerns About Legal Marijuana Edibles”

“…Friends say he ate the recommended dose of one-sixth of a marijuana-infused cookie on March 11. Image When he felt no effects he ate the entire cookie: six times the recommended dose. He later became irrational and jumped off a hotel balcony to his death…”

Two recent deaths and increased emergency room visits in Colorado have highlighted concerns about the safety of legal marijuana edibles.

Dr. George Sam Wang of Children’s Hospital Colorado says part of the problem is that the effects of edible marijuana begin more slowly than smokeable pot, though they tend to last longer.

“One of the dangers that we’ve been seeing with adult recreational retail use is they’ll take the recommended dose, wait, feel no effects and then continue to stack doses. Then before they know it they have a pretty large amount in their system and then they get potentially pretty severe effects,” he said.

For more: http://www.foxnews.com/health/2014/04/23/safety-concerns-about-legal-marijuana-edibles/

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by | February 7, 2014 · 8:12 am

Hospitality Industry Guest Issues: “Can You Legally Smoke Marijuana in a Seattle Hotel Room?”

“…According to the Washington Lodging Association, there are no universally enforced protocols within the hospitality industry as to smoking marijuana inside the hotels for medical or recreational purposes. Image Because of this, it is completely up to the hotel owners whether to allow marijuana use in the designated smoking rooms or not…”

With legal recreational pot shops set to open for business at some point in the spring, Seattle City Attorney Pete Holmes and others have been pushing the state to okay places where marijuana tourists in Seattle can smoke up. (So far to no avail.)

Their fear is that our streets will be crowded with tourists smoking in public and annoying everyone, as well as breaking the law against public “display” of weed. The fine is only $27, but the backlash could be bigger with too many puffers wandering around.

But in a state where it is illegal to smoke anything inside or around public places, things can get tricky for these tourists wanting to exercise their newfound freedom in hotel rooms.

For more: http://blog.seattlepi.com/marijuana/2014/02/05/answered-can-you-legally-smoke-marijuana-in-a-seattle-hotel-room/#14194103=0&20036105=0&20340101=0

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by | September 29, 2013 · 6:05 am

Hospitality Industry Legal Issues: Michigan Hotel Renovates Rooms To Accomodate Smokers (And Medical Marijuana Users); “Smoke-Free Air Laws” Do Not Apply To Outside Patios

“…Under the state’s Smoke-Free Air Law, which went into effect in May 2010, tobacco smoking is prohibited inside places where Hotel Guest Smoking Issuespeople work, including hotels, bars and restaurants. But the law doesn’t apply to smoking outside — hence the patios…The law also doesn’t mention cannabis smoke… Betty Aldworth, deputy director of the National Cannabis Industry Association, said “marijuana-related tourism is the fastest-growing sector of the marijuana industry…states with both medical marijuana laws and a flourishing health care industry — such as Grand Rapids — destinations for ill people to legally use medical marijuana.

The Howard Johnson franchise on 28th Street in Grand Rapids has seen occupancy soar since owner Bob Sullivan made a seemingly unfashionable business decision: accommodate smokers. And not just the tobacco variety. Sullivan caters to marijuana smokers, as well.

Twenty rooms already have been renovated to accommodate smokers. And by the time Sullivan’s done, 60-80 of the hotel’s 155 rooms will allow smoking — accommodating medical marijuana patients as well as tobacco smokers.

Michigan legalized medical marijuana in 2008, and Grand Rapids decriminalized marijuana last year — making possession of a small amount a civil infraction, similar to a parking ticket.

Occupancy at the Howard Johnson has seen an increase every weekend, Sullivan said. “Every weekend, every one of those rooms is sold.”

Sullivan, who himself does not smoke cigarettes or marijuana, estimates occupancy is up 50 percent since he started renovating the rooms.

Renovations have included opening up each room with sliding doors and installing a patio with a tall fence around it to provide privacy — “a little smoking area for each room right at the door,” Sullivan said. “Otherwise, people have to go outside the lobby doors.

For more: http://www.crainsdetroit.com/article/20130929/NEWS/309299981/smokers-tokers-light-up-hotel-owners-occupancy-rates#

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