North Baltimore Journal

ANNAPOLIS, MD — Governor Wes Moore on May 3, 2023 presided over the Moore-Miller Administration’s fourth bill signing, a day dedicated to protecting the rights of all Marylanders. The governor signed historic legislation that solidifies protections for reproductive rights, protects the rights of transgender Marylanders, and establishes an adult-use cannabis market. 

“On May 3, 2023, we further strengthened our leave no one behind vision by protecting individual freedoms, solidifying reproductive rights, expanding access to healthcare, and creating an adult-use cannabis market that directly benefits those that were disproportionately affected by the war on drugs,” said Gov. Moore. “Here in Maryland we are committed to righting the wrongs of the past and protecting the rights of all Marylanders in the future. As long as I am governor, I will fight with everything I’ve got to ensure we’re creating a safe, equitable, and prosperous home for every Marylander.”

“The legislation signed on May 3, 2023 by Governor Moore will protect the health, wellbeing, and rights of all Marylanders,” said Lt. Gov. Miller. “While other states are dead set on ripping away reproductive rights and attempting to erase the existence of trans and nonbinary individuals, we’re doing the opposite: We’re making Maryland a state that is welcoming, inclusive, and that safeguards the rights of all people.” 

Included among Governor Moore’s champion pieces of legislation signed on May 3, 2023 are:

S.B. 798, Declaration of Rights - Right to Reproductive Freedom, establishes that every person, as a central component of an individual's rights to liberty and equality, has the fundamental right to reproductive freedom.

S.B. 859, Reproductive Health Protection Act, prohibits a judge from requiring a person to give certain testimony or a statement or to produce evidence in another state for a case involving an alleged violation of the criminal law of the other state relating to legally protected health care.

S.B. 786, Health - Reproductive Health Services - Protected Information and Insurance Requirements, regulates the disclosure of certain information related to legally protected health care by custodians of public records, health information exchanges, and electronic health networks; requiring that the regulations adopted by the Maryland Health Care Commission regarding clinical information to be exchanged through the state.

S.B. 341, Public Senior Higher Education Institutions – Reproductive Health Services Plans – Requirements, requires that on or before August 1, 2024, certain public senior higher education institutions, in consultation with students, develop and implement a reproductive health services plan. This legislation also requires the University of Baltimore, in lieu of developing and implementing a reproductive health services plan, to provide students with access to over-the-counter contraception in a certain manner; and requires the Maryland Department of Health, on request, to provide assistance to a public senior higher education institution in developing the plan.

S.B. 460, Trans Health Equity Act, requires the Maryland Medical Assistance Program to provide gender-affirming treatment in a nondiscriminatory manner, requiring that the gender-affirming treatment be assessed according to nondiscriminatory criteria that are consistent with current clinical standards. This legislation prohibits the issuance of an adverse benefit determination related to gender-affirming treatment unless a certain experienced health care provider has reviewed and confirmed the appropriateness of the determination.

S.B. 516, Cannabis Reform, renames the Alcohol and Tobacco Commission to be the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Cannabis Commission. It establishes the Maryland Cannabis Administration as an independent unit of state government. In addition, this legislation establishes a regulatory and licensing system for adult-use cannabis; imposing a 9% tax on the sale and use tax of adult-use cannabis; requiring the Administration, on or before July 1, 2023, to convert medical cannabis licenses to licenses to operate a medical and adult-use cannabis business.

To view the complete list of bills signed into law on May 3, 2023, visit: https://governor.maryland.gov/Pages/bill-signings.aspx.

Original source can be found here.