Nurses with Medical Marijuana Cards.

Nurses General Nursing

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A new topic for you all to consider; is it legal in your facility for nurses to have medical marijuana cards and of course that use them. Anyone have experience with a nurse testing positive and not fired?

Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.
mhy12784 said:
Ive never used drugs

But i am curious. If a nurse went on vacation out of the country and used drugs recreationally there (and lets just assume that this is legal in that country)

Then came back to the usa and went back to work. Could they get fired/disciplined for testing positive ?

How would that work?

The simple answer is yes, they could face both termination and discipline from the state board of nursing against their license.

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Specializes in Critical Care.
mhy12784 said:
Ive never used drugs

But i am curious. If a nurse went on vacation out of the country and used drugs recreationally there (and lets just assume that this is legal in that country)

Then came back to the usa and went back to work. Could they get fired/disciplined for testing positive ?

How would that work?

That wouldn't really be any different than how it typically works. Drug tests don't typically differentiate between drug use at work and drug use on days off or on vacations, they just test for any signs of drug use at all.

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MunoRN said:
That wouldn't really be any different than how it typically works. Drug tests don't typically differentiate between drug use at work and drug use on days off or on vacations, they just test for any signs of drug use at all.

Well it would be different in that you are completely within the fines of the law (unlike a person with a MM card or w.e, who would still be violating federal law), and while you are out of the country you (presumably?) would be out of the BON's jurisdiction ?

I have no idea,

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Specializes in ER.

If they fire for using nicotine products, then I assume that they would fire for testing positive on drug use.

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applesxoranges said:
If they fire for using nicotine products, then I assume that they would fire for testing positive on drug use.

Im 100% guessing on this

But id be willing to bet money that the majority of hospitals dont fire nurses for using nicotine products.

Im sure they exists (from reading about it on here) but im near certain its a small minority

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
mhy12784 said:
Well it would be different in that you are completely within the fines of the law (unlike a person with a MM card or w.e, who would still be violating federal law), and while you are out of the country you (presumably?) would be out of the BON's jurisdiction ?

I have no idea,

In Colorado, we are within the confines of the law by smoking marijuana. Nevertheless, we would get fired if we were randomly tested and were positive. Employer policies have nothing to do with state laws. In an at-will employment state, they can create whatever restrictions they want, as long as they don't violate EEO laws.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
mhy12784 said:
Im 100% guessing on this

But id be willing to bet money that the majority of hospitals dont fire nurses for using nicotine products.

In the Denver area, I know of two such hospitals.

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mhy12784 said:
Well it would be different in that you are completely within the fines of the law (unlike a person with a MM card or w.e, who would still be violating federal law), and while you are out of the country you (presumably?) would be out of the BON's jurisdiction ?

I have no idea,

You would still get fired and/or be held responsible for any odd situation that happened requiring a drug screen if you tested positive.

Like I said, there is a big difference between testing positive and working under the influence.

I'm not sure how experienced anyone here is with marijuana, but an individual could smoke a a joint at say 9pm and be good for work at 7am. They would not be under the influence at work but would test positive maybe up to 4 weeks later, assuming they stopped smoking after the 9pm joint and depending on how they metabolize marijuana (their weight, activity level, how regularly the smoke, general metablism, etc.) In effect, it would be no different than drinking a beer or two, but the consequences would be far more severe.

My dad lives in France. A friend of his was driving on a two lane highway. He was stopped and waiting to turn left. He did nothing wrong legally and was not under the influence at the time. A motorcycle rider came flying down white line (which is legal in Europe for motorcycles) and hit him. The motorcyclist died in the wreck. The guy in the car got charged with man slaughter as his blood test was positive for marijuana.

Both situations are similar.

So, if you are planning a trip to "Amsterdam" and wish to get high, do it at the beginning of your vacation. Give yourself time to "clean" your pee before returning to work. Or, just don't get tested. ?

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klone said:
In Colorado, we are within the confines of the law by smoking marijuana. Nevertheless, we would get fired if we were randomly tested and were positive. Employer policies have nothing to do with state laws. In an at-will employment state, they can create whatever restrictions they want, as long as they don't violate EEO laws.

Pretty sure its still against federal law

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Specializes in Critical Care.
mhy12784 said:
Pretty sure its still against federal law

Sort of, it's an un-enforced federal law in respect to medical marijuana and recreational marijuana in the two states where it's legal for recreational use. So if we define laws by what you'll face legal repercussions for then it's not illegal in these instances.

But it doesn't really matter either way, employers can test for and terminate employees for using drugs legally.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

Colorado and Washington are working on testing methods that can quantify amounts of TCH and be able to tell when it was consumed. Until that happens (and perhaps even after) I imagine that most facilities will take a zero-tolerance approach to MJ testing.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
mhy12784 said:
Pretty sure its still against federal law

The US Attorney General has already come out and said that they are not going to prosecute anyone for possession or consumption in the states that voted for recreational use (CO and WA). So in those states, it's more "a-legal" federally. We are the guinea pigs, and the feds are watching in earnest to see how it plays out. It will just be a matter of time before it will be legal federally.

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