Arizona Tribune - Coalition for Patient Rights and Integrative Providers Association Condemn Nevada’s 83rd Session's AB76: A Devastating Blow to Cannabis Patients' Rights

LAS VEGAS, NEVADA / ACCESS Newswire / March 4, 2025 / Compassion Center, the Integrative Providers Association (IPA) and Coalition for Patient Rights (CPR) are extremely alarmed and deeply disheartened by the language in Nevada's 83rd Session's AB76, particularly Page 7, Section 10, Lines 18-19 where, if passed, Nevadans will be losing their ability to access and even utilize affordable hemp and cannabis concentrates that are augmented using synthetic cannabinoids. If passed, this law is poised to widen the gap between patients and their wellness.

Furthermore, this legislation is leaving way too much up for interpretation by those in the field. Researchers and scientists are not typically regulators, and lawmakers and regulators are not usually practicing scientists so asking one to do the job of another can be otherwise catastrophic if not short of expectations just due to a lack of bandwidth. Our scientists rely upon lawmakers to implement laws based on scientific facts, and the facts are, lawmakers and regulators should be focused on interpreting and enforcing the laws and they should both be leaving the interpretation and implementation of science up to researchers and scientists. On behalf of Compassion Center, CPR, IPA and the wider scientific community, we would like to collectively remind the great citizens of the state of Nevada, and each of their elected officials, that regulators are in the business of regulation, and lawmakers are in the business of making laws, neither of which have any business interpreting the science. Researchers and scientists also have no business interpreting the law. Even if a legislator happens to have the subject matter expertise to weigh in on a scientific subject, they should still recuse themselves as an expert due to their inherent conflicts of interests, and leave the interpretation up to the experts since one cannot serve more than one 5-Star General and laws like these need accountability. Please take a moment and call your local legislators, and Congressional representatives, and let them know why this legislation needs to be stopped before it sets a catastrophic precedent.

Unfortunately, this legislation dangerously broadens the definition of 'synthetic cannabis' to also include any product 'not obtained directly without the use of chemicals derived from a plant of the genus cannabis.' Under this interpretation, Nevada follows suit and caves into California's influences, where even cannabis and hemp extracts made using "chemicals" such as but not limited to water-a benign and natural solvent-could become legally classified as "synthetic cannabinoids" if the investigator that is interpreting the law is confused as to how to properly interpret the law.

The way this bill is written, it can be difficult for the layperson to interpret, and can lead to one overlooking the overreach that threatens their accessibility, affordability and safety of otherwise vital cannabis-based, hops-based, and hemp-based therapies for countless patients, and it unnecessarily punishes many of our small family farmers, processors and producers, effectively restricting their options to strictly producing, and/or smoking, cured flowers that may or may not be from a reputable source. By criminalizing and/or delegitimizing widely used forms of augmented cannabis such as terpene infused wax, tinctures, edibles, and vapes, this bill undermines decades of work and further restricts the profound healing potential of the cannabis plant while abandoning patients who depend on these therapies for managing their pain or improving their individual quality of life.

A Step Backward for Medical Freedom
Cannabis is a lifeline for people managing chronic pain, epilepsy, PTSD, cancer, and numerous other conditions. Many of these patients cannot or should not smoke cannabis due to underlying health concerns, workplace restrictions, or personal preferences, and should not be forced to do so just because some legislator or regulator wishes to expand their agency's regulatory reach or overreach. Nevada Bill AB76 strips our most vulnerable, low-income, patients of their freedoms to choose the most effective and accessible form of cannabis for meeting their individual needs.

By redefining well-established extraction processes as "synthetic," this legislation conflates what is considered patient-centered medicine with artificial and harmful substances. This dangerous misunderstanding punishes patients, caregivers and producers, pushing many of them toward a gray market, or the black market, or worse, forcing patients to endure unnecessary suffering by going without.

Throwing Patients to the Wolves
At a time when progress in cannabis research and advocacy offers hope to millions across the country, [Page 6, Section 6, Lines 30-36] of Nevada's 83rd Session AB76 betrays that hope by granting the Nevada Cannabis Compliance Board (CCB) broad authority to override judicial review and undermine the due process rights guaranteed under the Constitution. This bill also throws patients to the proverbial wolves-restricting safe, regulated, and affordable access, and jeopardizing the health and well-being of our most vulnerable citizens by prioritizing bureaucratic control over compassion, scientific understanding, and common sense.

Patients are not criminals. The methods used to extract the healing compounds of cannabis, whether with ice, water, ethanol, or CO₂, are not acts of synthetic engineering-they are acts of care, designed to ensure safety, precision, and effectiveness of the medicine patients rely on.

Lives Are at Stake
Compassion Center, Integrative Providers Association and the Coalition for Patient Rights urge lawmakers to reconsider this bill and the damaging language in Nevada Bill AB76. We call on Nevadan advocates, caregivers, and patients across Nevada to raise their voices against this ill-conceived legislation. The lives and dignity of Nevada's most vulnerable residents depend on it.

This bill is more than a setback-it's a threat to progress, compassion, and the core belief that every patient deserves access to the medicine that works best for them. We cannot allow outdated fears and misconceptions to rob people of their health and hope.

Take Action Now
The Coalition for Patient Rights implores the public to contact their representatives and demand an immediate revision to the language of AB76. We also call on Nevada medical professionals, advocacy groups, and concerned citizens to join us in ensuring that Nevada's cannabis laws protect, not punish, its patients.

Together, we can stop this dangerous legislation and uphold the rights and dignity of those who rely on cannabis for healing.

About Us
Compassion Center, Coalition for Patients' Rights (CPR), and the Integrative Providers Association (IPA) are dedicated to advocating for healthcare reform that prioritizes patient empowerment, integrative medicine, and sustainable wellness solutions. We believe in a healthcare system that serves the people first-rooted in compassion, science, and the fundamental right to informed health choices.

Founded in 2001, Compassion Center was founded by-patients, for-patients in the name of patients in Eugene, Oregon and has grown to serve patients in over 18 states. Compassion Center is dedicated to advancing professional education, patient advocacy and healthcare innovations that lead to improved access, affordability and equity for all.

To learn more about the Compassion Center, visit: https://compassion-center.org/

To learn more about the Coalition for Patient Rights, visit: https://coalitionforpatientrights.org/

To learn more about the Integrative Providers Association, visit: www.IntegrativeProviders.org

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