Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval has vetoed a bill that would have allowed massage therapists and healthcare providers to administer hemp-based products, such as topicals, to patients or clients, the Nevada Independent reports. The measure would have also provided protections for professionals from licensing boards for using medical or recreational cannabis or expressing their opinions about cannabis.
In his veto message, Sandoval said the legislation “raises several questions regarding the use of medical and recreational marijuana” and that it would be “unwise” to limit the authority of licensing boards.
“It is also imprudent to expand possible uses of recreational marijuana by allowing topical application of products containing marijuana and hemp by massage therapists and others,” Sandoval wrote in the message. “These are subjects that warrant further study and review to consider the efficacy, health effects, and legality of these issues.”
The bill was introduced by Sen. Tick Seagerblom, passing the Senate in April and the Assembly in May across party lines in both chambers.
Nevada voters legalized adult cannabis use during November’s general election and the Nevada Tax Commission adopted “Early Start” plans on May 8. Under the plan the state would roll out the adult-use regime six months earlier than expected, allowing current medical dispensaries to apply to sell cannabis products to anyone 21-and-older.
However, last week Douglas County attorney Jim Hartman filed a complaint with the state attorney general’s office claiming the Tax Commission broke a state law because their May 8 agenda didn’t reference “marijuana, early start, or Question 2.”
If the agenda is found to have violated state law the commission would have to revisit the agenda on June 26.