Judge Orders Illinois to Allow Medical Marijuana for PTSD

In Cook County, Illinois, Judge Neil Cohen gave criticism regarding the following of recommendations given by the Medical Cannabis Advisory Board. Several lawsuits are pending against the state’s medical marijuana program to include additional medical conditions. Some of those conditions include chronic pain, PTSD, and osteoarthritis.

The same judge is scheduled to hear the pending lawsuits, The Chicago Tribune reports. Governor Rauner’s agreement to sign legislation to expand the medical marijuana program may become redundant following this judicial order. As the order is written, the program has 30 days to add PTSD to its qualifying conditions list.

A follow-up hearing has been scheduled to check the program’s compliance of the order.

Judge Cohen said, “The Director’s legal duty was to review the evidence, review the advisory board’s recommendations based thereon, and render a final decision accepting or denying the proposal. Instead, Director Shah engaged in a private investigation, hidden from public view and more importantly, hidden from the parties, and arrived at his conclusion based thereon. This process was constitutionally inappropriate.”

Military veteran, who is diagnosed with PTSD, Daniel Paul Jabs filed the case against the state medical marijuana program.

Counsel for Jabs, Michael Goldberg, said, “This judge…stepped in to protect (Jabs’) health, safety and welfare. The judiciary seems to be sending a message to the executive branch.”

A signature from the Governor, on a pending bill, would extend the medical marijuana program through 2020 and expand the list of qualifying conditions to 40.