[Congressional Record Volume 169, Number 58 (Thursday, March 30, 2023)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E284]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             INTRODUCTION OF THE VETERANS EQUAL ACCESS ACT

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                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Thursday, March 30, 2023

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, today Representative Mast and I 
introduced the Veterans Equal Access Act. This legislation would 
provide equal access to state-legal medical marijuana for veterans 
participating in Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) health care. It 
ends the harmful VA prohibition on doctors and health care providers 
giving opinions or recommendations on, or completing forms for, state-
legal medical marijuana programs.
  U.S. cannabis laws are broken, including our laws that govern 
veterans' access to medical cannabis. Many veterans report using 
cannabis for medical purposes as a substitute for prescription drugs. 
The VA National Center for Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) has 
acknowledged that veterans use cannabis to relieve symptoms of PTSD, 
and that in many states PTSD is a qualifying condition for enrollment 
in medical cannabis programs.
  Most states with state-legal medical cannabis programs require some 
sort of recommendation or approval from a medical provider for patients 
to enroll in the program. However, VA policy prevents VA physicians and 
care providers from any participation, including helping with the 
required paperwork or forms.
  This forces veterans to seek care outside of the VA system to receive 
medical cannabis recommendations, which can interrupt continuity of 
care, lead to mistakes or gaps in care, and require veterans to pay out 
of pocket for additional physician visits. VA physicians should not be 
denied the ability to offer a recommendation that they think may meet 
the needs of their patients. And veterans should not be forced outside 
the VA system to seek treatment that is legal in their state.
  The Veterans Equal Access Act would allow VA doctors and healthcare 
providers to give their opinions or recommendations on medical cannabis 
and to complete forms in compliance with state-legal medical marijuana 
programs.
  I look forward to working with my co-leads, Representative Brian Mast 
and Senators Jacky Rosen, and my colleagues in the House and Senate to 
enact this legislation and provide equal access to state-legal medical 
cannabis for our veterans participating in VA health care.

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