Jacob P. LaFreniere*
Abstract
Workers’ compensation laws create a right for employees who are injured on the job to receive reimbursement for reasonable or necessary medical expenses associated with their injuries. Because of the numerous negative side effects of prescription opioids, injured employees often wish to participate in state medical marijuana programs when their injuries require long-term pain management.
Despite state laws that allow individuals to legally use and possess medical marijuana, the drug remains illegal under federal law. As a result, employers and workers’ compensation insurers frequently deny injured employees’ requests for reimbursement of medical marijuana expenses, even when their doctors deem medical marijuana a reasonable or necessary treatment. When employees petition a court or administrative tribunal to order reimbursement, employers and insurers often argue that complying with such an order would require them to aid and abet a violation of federal law.
This Comment argues that reimbursement of medical marijuana expenses pursuant to a court or tribunal order cannot constitute aiding and abetting a violation of federal law. Ultimately, this Comment recommends that if medical marijuana is to be excluded from workers’ compensation coverage, that decision should be made by state legislatures rather than courts or tribunals. Until state legislatures make that decision, courts and tribunals should issue orders requiring employers and workers’ compensation insurers to reimburse injured employees for their medical marijuana expenses.
*J.D. Candidate, The Pennsylvania State University, Penn State Law, 2021. The author gratefully acknowledges Heidi Tripp for her incredible assistance throughout the process of writing this Comment and wishes to thank his friends and family for their constant support. The author also wishes to thank you, the reader, for taking time out of your busy schedule to read something he poured his heart and soul into.
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