A public agency in Oregon has agreed to allow its employees to use marijuana medically off-the-job without fear of termination.
The Tualatin Valley Water District is likely the first such agency in Oregon to permit patients who carry medical marijuana identification cards to use marijuana medically without fear of failing a drug test. However employees who have federally issued commercial driver’s licenses will not be allowed to use marijuana medically due to the federal prohibition of marijuana.
In 1998, voters in Oregon approved an initiative to allow patients who suffer from conditions such as cancer and HIV/AIDS to use marijuana medically if they possess a state issued ID card. The Health Division of the Oregon Department of Human Resources has recently considered adding medical ailments such as anxiety, depression and sleep disorders to the list of medical conditions treatable with marijuana.
“All employers in Oregon will be faced with it,” said Greg DiLoreto the water district’s general manager. “There’s no precedent. We’re setting a standard here. If you step back from it being marijuana, all you’re dealing with is a prescription drug, and employees will need to notify their supervisor if they’re using it.”
“Nearly 30 years after NORML filed a federal lawsuit to make marijuana available as a medicine, finally we’re starting to see a remarkable amount of pragmatic and logical policies being implemented by government officials — albeit at the local level,” said Allen St. Pierre, NORML Foundation Executive Director.
For more information, please contact Allen St. Pierre, NORML Foundation Executive Director at (202) 483-8751.
