Many individuals require medical marijuana to manage pain or for other health purposes. Unfortunately, Louisiana does not accept out-of-state medical marijuana cards.
Read on for more information about Louisiana’s medical marijuana laws, how out-of-state medical cards work, and which states accept out-of-state medical marijuana cards.
Louisiana Medical Marijuana Law 2022
As of 2022, Louisiana does allow citizens to be prescribed and use medical marijuana, provided the prescription comes from a state-licensed physician or mental health professional. Citizens must have a Louisiana medical marijuana prescription to acquire it.
Furthermore, Louisiana residents can only acquire a maximum of 30 days’ supply. If you are a medical cannabis patient, you can purchase up to 2.5 ounces of raw cannabis every 14 days with an appropriate prescription.
As of August 1, 2022, several new Louisiana medical marijuana laws took effect, including:
- Police can’t use the smell of marijuana to do home searches if they don’t have a warrant
- The Louisiana Department of Health is now in charge of medical marijuana regulation
- People can’t smoke medical marijuana in any vehicles
- State employees may not be punished if they test positive for THC, provided that they have a doctor’s prescription or recommendation for medical marijuana consumption
Other States that Accept Out-of-State Medical Cards
Although Louisiana doesn’t have reciprocity for out-of-state medical marijuana cards, other states do. The below states accept out-of-state medical marijuana cards, enabling patients to acquire their medicinal cannabis even while on vacation, visiting relatives, etc.
- Arkansas
- Hawaii
- Maine
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Mexico
- Oklahoma
- Rhode Island
- Utah
- Washington DC
Note that many more states have medical marijuana programs. But most of these only allow their residents to acquire medical cannabis while within their borders.
Does Louisiana honor out-of-state medical cards?
No. Louisiana does not accept or honor out-of-state medical marijuana cards.
Louisiana does not have “reciprocity” with any other state in the country. Therefore, Louisiana doesn’t recognize any out-of-state medical marijuana cards for any purpose. Americans can't use their out-of-state cards to acquire medical marijuana in either its processed or raw flower states, even if they have a prescription from a licensed physician.
Can I use my medical card in Louisiana?
If your medicinal marijuana prescription has been provided by a Louisiana-licensed physician or mental health care practitioner, you may use that prescription to acquire medical marijuana as dictated or recommended.
The medical card or prescription:
- Must be provided by a Louisiana state licensed physician or healthcare provider
- Must not be expired
- May only be used to acquire exactly the amount of medicinal marijuana you are prescribed, not more
Can I use my Florida MMJ card in Louisiana?
No. Louisiana does not have reciprocity with any states. Neither does Florida. Therefore, even if Louisiana suddenly allowed you to use out-of-state medical marijuana cards, you would not be able to with a Florida MMJ card unless the Sunshine State changed its laws as well.
Do you need a medical card to buy from a dispensary in Louisiana?
If you intend to buy medical marijuana from a Louisiana dispensary, you do not need a medical card on your person to retrieve your prescription. Instead, you just need a prescription note from a licensed Louisiana doctor.
Show your prescription to one of the nine legal dispensaries throughout Louisiana, and you can retrieve your medicinal marijuana in minutes. But you must acquire your medical marijuana from a designated dispensary – since marijuana is still a Schedule 1 drug, you cannot retrieve it from a regular pharmacy like other prescription medications.
Closing on Using Out-of-State Medical Cards in Louisiana
Although you can't use out-of-state medical cards to get medicinal marijuana in Louisiana, you can acquire medical marijuana with a prescription from a state-licensed physician. Although medical marijuana acquisition is limited at this time, Louisiana’s medicinal marijuana program is still in its earliest stages.
In the years to come, Louisiana may relax certain laws or restrictions surrounding the use of medicinal marijuana, as well as make it easier for individuals to acquire their prescriptions from regular pharmacies or while using out-of-state medical cards.
