Governor-elect Mike Braun expressed he is open to legalizing medical marijuana in Indiana during his gubernatorial campaign, but said he is not in support of legalizing recreational marijuana.
Braun has not laid out an action plan for legalizing medical marijuana but has emphasized the inevitability of expanding cannabis legalization in Indiana.
“The fact is we are surrounded by four states (where medical marijuana is legal),” Braun said in a Republican gubernatorial primary debate March 26. “It’s going to hit all of us, I’m going to listen to law enforcement — they have to put up with the brunt of it."
Marijuana growth, sale, possession and ingestion for both medical and recreational purposes is currently illegal in Indiana. Indiana is one of only 12 U.S. states that has not legalized either medical or recreational marijuana.
Possessing marijuana in Indiana is a class B misdemeanor and could warrant up to 180 days in prison and a $1,000 fine. The punishment may be greater based on the amount of marijuana possessed. Despite local restrictions, marijuana is the most used federally illegal drug in the United States.
In Indiana, epilepsy patients are permitted to use CBD oil with up to 0.3% THC content to help treat their epilepsy. They are required to hold an Indiana Medical Marijuana card supplied by a licensed doctor in Indiana to buy CBD oil. This exception was signed into law by Gov. Eric Holcomb in 2018.
Marijuana is also popular in other states for treating chronic pain, seizures, nausea, depression and anxiety.
There is a small caveat to Indiana’s law — possessing under an ounce of marijuana in Marion County is decriminalized. This decision was announced by former Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears on Sept. 30, 2019. However, public consumption, being under the influence in public and possessing more than an ounce of marijuana still warrant criminal possession charges.
Concerns with medical marijuana
Holcomb, whose gubernatorial term ends in January, opposes marijuana legalization in Indiana, despite impending reclassification of the drug by the U.S. Justice Department. According to State Affairs, Holcomb said, “It needs to be studied. I need to see conclusive evidence in terms of medical applications, like Robitussin or cough syrup, or any other medicine. But to call marijuana ‘medicine’ just out of opinion doesn’t convince me.”
He has also expressed concern about marijuana not being federally legal.
“Now, it needs to be legal and that’s going to have to start on the federal front first,” Holcomb told WTHR.
Marijuana consumption comes with risks such as altering brain functions including memory, attention, coordination and reaction time. Cannabis can also increase the risk of strokes and heart disease and can damage lung tissues and blood vessels if smoked.
According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, about 1 in 10 marijuana users will become addicted to marijuana. If frequently used before the age of 18, the addiction rate rises to 1 in 6 users.
Scott Chipman, Vice President of Americans Against Legalizing Marijuana, said marijuana is not medicine.
“Medical marijuana?” Chipman said. “It’s a complete ruse.”
The FDA has not yet approved the use of marijuana to treat medical conditions. The FDA has been reviewing cannabis-related clinical research for over 50 years, a process that is complicated because cannabis products are often complex mixtures including more than one active ingredient.
Chipman said in certain legal states, it is too easy to acquire a medical marijuana card and no prescription is needed. Though doctors cannot prescribe medical marijuana anywhere in the United States, physician’s recommendations are required to acquire medical marijuana.
In California, Chipman said, the definition of medical marijuana is too loose.
“Marijuana used for any reason that a person thinks it might help alleviate some medical condition,” Chipman said. “So ingrown toenail, anxiety while driving, pain, insomnia and glaucoma.”
The case for legalization
However, 2023 public opinion polls by Ball State University show only 9.8% of Hoosier respondents think marijuana should be completely illegal.
A concern of Braun’s when considering legalizing marijuana is the possibility of it being laced with other drugs like fentanyl.
Alicia Tucker, communications director and former chairman of Indiana Norml, says black market cannabis is often laced, but legalizing cannabis and enacting regulation could stop this.
“This is actually what’s really wrong in the state of Indiana right now,” Tucker said. “There’s no regulations.”
Indiana Norml is a nonprofit cannabis advocacy organization working to sway public opinion to legalize cannabis for responsible use by adults, and advocate for consumers to ensure access to safe and high-quality cannabis.
Tucker said she thinks Braun might be open to medical marijuana legalization because of his advocacy for veterans. Some veterans use cannabis to treat or mitigate their post-traumatic stress disorder.
“You’ve got veterans and sick people going across the (Indiana) border and becoming traffickers,” Tucker said. “They’re still going to buy it because a lot of those guys are otherwise relying on opiates or other drugs for their PTSD.”
Tucker referenced a study from the National Library of Medicine published in 2014 that found states with legalized medical cannabis had a 24.8% lower mean annual opioid overdose mortality rate.
However, another study from the Georgetown Journal of Law and Public Policy published in 2019 concluded that cannabis is likely not a proper or sufficient solution for the opioid epidemic.
Tucker highlighted the success of marijuana legalization in other states.
“All the states that have reformed haven’t thought about going back, and I think that’s something that’s really evident in how well it’s worked for those states,” Tucker said.
Studies show a substantial tax revenue increase in states with legalized marijuana. Colorado, Washington, Alaska, Oregon and California, the first five states to legalize recreational marijuana for adults, made a total of $2.78 billion in collected taxes on marijuana sales in 2021. New Frontier Data, a cannabis market research company, estimated that federal marijuana legalization would have led to an extra combined $131.8 billion in federal tax revenue from 2017 to 2025 across the U.S.
Others have argued legalization could cost states more in the long run. A study commissioned by the Centennial Institute at Colorado Christian University showed that Coloradans spent about $4.50 for every dollar of marijuana tax revenue to mitigate the effects of marijuana legalization such as healthcare costs.
Jared Bell, owner of Bell Family Dispensary, said he hopes Indiana will learn from other states’ mistakes. Bell Family Dispensary has a location in Bloomington, where they sell products containing less than 0.3% THC, and a location in Destin, Florida, where medical marijuana is legal. Bell said he has witnessed the overregulation of cannabis companies in Florida.
“Because of the regulations they put in the medical bill in Florida for cannabis, it created monopolies, and now these monopolies have so much money, they pretty much control everything,” Bell said.
He highlighted the importance of allowing “mom-and-pop shops” like Bell Family Dispensary to play a part in the cannabis industry, and said he hopes Indiana will stray from limiting cannabis sales to large companies.
The path forward
Jody Madeira, professor of law at IU and Monroe County Commissioner-elect, said legalizing marijuana could be a difficult process. The process would include putting limits on growers, enforcing inspection of growth sites and dispensaries, deciding if insurance will cover medical marijuana costs, figuring out how these enforcements and limits will be funded and harmonizing these procedures with other existing statutes in Indiana law.
Additionally, Madeira said the state would need to create a system to help officers tell who is using legal medical marijuana and who is illegally using marijuana non-medically, especially when stopped in traffic scenarios.
“For example, states issue medical marijuana users a card that entitles them both to get it (medical marijuana) and they can show it, and they are protected from, for example, charges in case of a traffic stop,” Madeira said.
Despite the difficulties of the legalization process, Madeira said with the governor’s support, this process is much more likely to succeed.
“All of these things are doable if there is the political will to do so,” she said.
