TRENTON, N.J. (KYW Newsradio) — The New Jersey Supreme Court has ruled unanimously that a construction company must pay for an injured employee’s medical marijuana expenses.
What does this mean, and what happens next?
Employment and civil rights attorney Kevin Costello said employers trying to avoid covering the costs of medical marijuana on a worker’s compensation claim will have a difficult time getting out of that.
“If there are any questions that are still pending in the appeals process that are identical to this, this decision should resolve those issues,” he said.
Costello, of the law firm Costello & Mains LLC in Mount Laurel, says the ruling has a fairly simple legal application going forward.
“Apparently, medical marijuana is what it is. It’s a medication. Just like Benadryl, or opioids or cough medicine.”
Vincent Hager suffered a back injury while on the job in 2001. He was initially prescribed opioids for chronic pain, and he became addicted. Hager told the court he switched to medical marijuana in 2016.
The court unanimously ruled that the company, M&K Construction, must cover those costs.
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“You would assume that employers now have the clear message that this is not a thing they need to worry about, and therefore it’s not a challenge they need to mount,” Costello said.
Costello believes companies really have to think twice about how likely it would be to win a case like this in the future.
In court, M&K Construction argued that paying the claims could be aiding and abetting illegal drug sales and other illegal activities.
The judges said specific intent is a crucial element to prove aid and abet violations, and the company cannot be held liable for the purchase of marijuana because the court ordered it pay.