New rules and guidelines could be in place for Medical Marijuana in Missouri

The Missouri Legislature has passed changes to the state’s new medical marijuana industry. The bill would require Department of Health and Senior Services employees associated with licensing medical marijuana businesses to submit their fingerprints for criminal background checks.

Representative Ron Hicks of Dardenne Prairie says the department could also require fingerprints from medical marijuana business employees as part of the licensing or certification process. On the house floor Hicks explains the need to ensure the right people are handling the product.

The bill became a priority after the FBI informed the state health department, which licenses and regulates the medical marijuana industry, that the department will not have access to its national fingerprint background check database. Representative Lane Roberts of Joplin says his legislation would clear up that problem. Roberts said, “Because the department is not a law enforcement agency, the Bureau declines to share that information without legislative authority. This bill provides that authority.”

The bill, which is headed to the governor, would also ban edibles that are made or marketed to appeal to people under 18 years old, including gummies, lollipops and cotton candy. Later this year, Missouri patients could start buying medical marijuana products.