They have a plan to ban employment discrimination against medical cannabis patients

Representative Jesús Manuel Ortiz filed this week the House 152 Project, which will prohibit employers from discriminating against employees who are registered patients and authorized to use medical cannabis.

“In both Puerto Rico and the United States, there are state laws that allow the use of medical cannabis on patients authorized and duly certified by the state. However, not all jurisdictions have labor protection laws to protect employees. or aspiring to discriminate employees to test positive for cannabis as a result of any medication they need to meet their conditions. This puts patients in a vulnerable position to be discriminated against and at risk of losing their jobs, “Ortiz said. González in a press release.

The project, which was joined as co-authors by representatives Rafael “Tatito” Hernández, Héctor Ferrer, Ramón Luis Cruz and Orlando Aponte, states that registered patients will be considered a protected category in all employment protection laws in Puerto Rico. Rico. “Being a patient treating your conditions with medical cannabis cannot be an excuse to be discriminated against in employment. Our goal is to protect employees from being penalized for taking advantage of medical treatment that may be the best or only way to relief available for their respective conditions, “Ortiz assured.

The representative also explained that, although Law 42-2017 allows the use of medicinal cannabis, it does not protect employees who use it from being penalized for taking advantage of this treatment. Therefore, this measure seeks to temper the rule of law to protect the employee-patient.

“Approval of this project would give the employee-patient peace of mind to benefit from medical cannabis treatment without fear of being penalized and even fired from their employment. The measure even protects the patient from the recruitment and hiring process. Being a patient treating their conditions with medical cannabis cannot be an excuse to be discriminated against in employment, ”the popular representative added.

Finally, Ortiz stressed that the measure incorporates certain exceptions to employee-patient protection if the employer succeeds in proving that the use of medical cannabis poses a danger or interferes with their work functions; puts at risk a certificate or permit issued by the federal government; or the employee ingests the medications during work hours without authorization, among others.