With the legalization in some states of marijuana, particularly for medicinal purposes, this is opening the door for at least some forward-thinking doctors and employers to consider if there are any benefits to be derived in workers compensation, either to the employee or the bottom line, or both.

How the use of legal marijuana is affecting the workplace was one of the topics addressed at the 2019 CLM Workers Compensation Conference this week, and panelists shared their varying perspectives on its use from the perspective of workers compensation.

It may be surprising to some that in certain jurisdictions carriers have been mandated to reimburse claimants, and that some carriers and third-party administrators who provide reimbursement for medical marijuana will reimburse directly to the claimant. This is likely because marijuana is still a Schedule 1 drug subject to federal law, and the carrier does not want to cover the drug or directly pay for it as part of their workers' compensation program.