Put Patients First Act

This bill is called the "Put Patients First Act"

This bill lets registered patients use marijuana for medical purposes.

 Registered patients are people who get a card from the government that says the person has a disability or illness that medical marijuana can help with. 

The bill explains how people can apply to become a registered patient.

The bill says that doctors can:

• Teach patients about using marijuana to help with their illness or disability

The bill says that registered patients can: 

• Have marijuana and use it

• Ask to be able to have more marijuana than the law says if a doctor says it is okay

The bill says that caregivers can: 

• Be protected from legal trouble for having marijuana that they give to a patient

The bill says that the South Carolina Department of Public Health can: 

• Keep a list of registered patients

• Protect the information on the list of registered patients

The bill has rules for how dispensaries can run, make money, and sell marijuana to registered patients. 

• A dispensary is a type of store that sells marijuana 

If a person does not follow the rules in this bill about having marijuana, the state can take their medical marijuana card away.

If a person lies about their disability or illness to get a medical marijuana card, they can get in trouble. They can be made to pay a fine, go to jail, or both.

People would have to start following the rules in this bill once the Governor approves it.