Posted: | July 29, 2019 03:01 PM |
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From: | Senator Lawrence M. Farnese, Jr. |
To: | All Senate members |
Subject: | Tax credit for medical marijuana |
Pennsylvania does not charge sales tax on medication because frankly, medications are expensive enough for most people, even with insurance. Unfortunately, medical marijuana isn’t covered by insurance and patients who need it must pay entirely out of pocket. I was shocked to discover that on average that costs $500-$1,000 a month per patient, in addition to transportation costs, ATM fees for these all cash transactions, and certification costs. Additionally, despite the tax on medical marijuana being levied at the point of sale between the grower and the dispensary, those costs are inevitably passed onto patients. This is why I am introducing legislation to help lessen the burden of these costs on our taxpayers by allowing them to offset part of their state tax liability if they are a certified patient or caregiver and can show proof of unreimbursed payment for medical marijuana. The annual tax credit is capped at $1,000 per year, per applicant, and may not exceed $10,000,000 in total credits issued. Please join me in this effort to relieve the financial burden of being sick in the Commonwealth. |
Introduced as SB831