Committee hears bill to allow medical cannabis use by terminal patients in health facilities

Senate Bill 847, introduced by Chairwoman Murray, would require certain health‑care facilities to permit the use of medical cannabis by terminally ill patients, subject to restrictions designed to avoid conflicts with facility funding or staffing obligations.

Chair Murray said the bill is personal to her and would allow terminal patients to use medical cannabis where prescribed, while recognizing facilities that rely on federal funding may face legal limits. “This bill is personal to me as I had a family member who was very sick with cancer and the only thing that would allow them to eat was consuming cannabis,” Chair Murray said. She acknowledged additional drafting work is needed and that facilities dependent on federal funds present legal challenges.

Multiple patients and advocates testified in support. Ellen Lennox Smith, co‑director of US Pain Foundation advocacy for cannabis, described personal benefits and recounted a national model (Ryan’s Law) aimed at ensuring terminal patients can use medical cannabis to maintain communication and quality of life. Brielle Davis, a medical marijuana patient, cited studies linking cannabis to reductions in nausea, vomiting and improvements in appetite and mental‑health symptoms among palliative care patients. Stuart Smith and other witnesses described personal family caregiving experiences and urged passage.

Committee members asked clarifying questions about the bill’s scope and whether it would apply only to terminal patients. Witnesses and the sponsor pointed to California’s approach as a working model: patients bring sealed medication that is stored in a locked box, non‑smokeable forms (pills, tinctures, topicals) are permitted, and only patients with a qualifying medical card use the medication; California’s law was described as including terminal status criteria for eligibility. The sponsor said the current draft did not clearly limit use to terminal patients and indicated that language would need to be clarified.

After testimony, the committee held SB 847 for further consideration. Members sought further drafting to address federal funding concerns and to add clear eligibility language for terminal status.