New Mexico

Under the Lynn and Erin Compassionate Use Act, NMSA 1978, Section 26-2B-3(L), a "practitioner" is defined as a person licensed in New Mexico to prescribe and administer drugs that are subject to the Controlled Substances Act, Chapter 30, Article 31 NMSA 1978. This includes:

• Doctors of Medicine (MD)
• Doctors of Osteopathic Medicine (DO)
• Nurse Practitioners (NP)
• Prescribing Psychologists

All must hold an active New Mexico prescribing license and complete Medical Provider registration with the NMDOH before certifying patients. 

Additional requirements include:

• A practitioner's primary place of practice must be located within New Mexico.
• A practitioner may not certify a patient to whom they are related within the second degree of consanguinity or the first degree of affinity (including a spouse, child, parent, sibling, grandparent, or in-law).
• Resident physicians and fellows are not eligible to certify patients, as they do not meet the prescribing credential requirements.

Before certifying patients, practitioners must complete a Medical Provider application and obtain NMDOH program approval. Once approved, practitioners access their account in the NMDOH Online Patient Portal to initiate and submit patient applications directly. Practitioners are responsible for beginning every new and renewal patient application. 

Please refer to our instructions for detailed information.

CONTINUING EDUCATION

New Mexico does not require practitioners certifying patients in the Medical Cannabis Program to complete continuing education. Under 7 NM Admin Code 7.34.3.10(H), the NMDOH encourages certifying practitioners to obtain at least two continuing medical education credit hours annually related to the medicinal use of cannabis. This is a recommendation, not a requirement.

The NMDOH hosts a monthly Cannabis Forum for medical providers who certify patients in the program. Presentation materials from these forums are available on the NMDOH Healthcare Providers and Practitioners page.

There are currently 30 qualifying conditions for the New Mexico Medical Cannabis Program. They are:

• Alzheimer's Disease
• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
• Anxiety Disorder
• Autism Spectrum Disorder
• Cancer
• Crohn's Disease
• Damage to the Nervous Tissue of the Spinal Cord (with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity)
• Epilepsy/Seizure Disorder
• Friedreich's Ataxia
• Glaucoma
• Hepatitis C Infection currently receiving antiviral therapy
• HIV/AIDS
• Hospice Care
• Huntington’s disease
• Inclusion Body Myositis
• Inflammatory Autoimmune-mediated Arthritis
• Insomnia
• Intractable Nausea/Vomiting
• Lewy Body Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Obstructive Sleep Apnea
• Opioid Use Disorder
• Painful Peripheral Neuropathy
• Parkinson’s disease
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
• Severe Anorexia/Cachexia
• Severe Chronic Pain
• Spasmodic Torticollis (Cervical Dystonia)
• Spinal Muscular Atrophy
• Ulcerative Colitis

If your patient does not have a qualifying condition and you feel they would benefit from the medical use of cannabis, that person can petition the Medical Advisory Board to add their condition to the current list. Information on filing a petition to add a new qualifying condition can also be found on this website.

Additionally, the Medical Cannabis Advisory Board (MCAB) convenes at least twice per year to review petitions to add new conditions. Practitioners may not certify a patient for a condition that is not on the approved list. Write-in diagnoses are not accepted. If a practitioner believes a patient would benefit from medical cannabis for a condition not on the approved list, the patient may petition the MCAB directly.

Step 1: Confirm that your New Mexico prescribing license is active, that your primary place of practice is in New Mexico, and that you have completed Medical Provider registration with the NMDOH before certifying any patient.

Step 2: Establish a bona fide practitioner-patient relationship. Review the patient's medical history and confirm the presence of a qualifying debilitating medical condition. The written certification must include the medical justification for certification and a statement that, in your professional opinion, the potential health benefits of the medical use of cannabis would likely outweigh the health risks for this patient. 

Step 3: Initiate the patient application in the NMDOH Online Patient Portal. Complete the practitioner's portion of the application, including your clinical licensure, attestation of New Mexico practice location, and your certification of the patient's debilitating medical condition.

Step 4: The patient logs in to their portal account to complete their portion of the application, upload identification documents, and sign and submit.

Step 5: Maintain documentation of your evaluation and certification in the patient's medical record, including the length of time the patient has been under your care.

A practitioner may only issue a written certification on the basis of an evaluation conducted via telemedicine if the practitioner has previously examined the patient in person.

Step 1: The patient must schedule an appointment with their practitioner within 12 months of the card's expiration date. A new written certification is required for every renewal. The patient's previous certification cannot be reused.

Step 2: The new certification must be obtained within 90 calendar days prior to the expiration of the patient's current card.

Step 3: The practitioner initiates the renewal application in the NMDOH Online Patient Portal. The patient then logs in, verifies the information, completes their portion, and submits.

Step 4: Renewal applications are typically processed within 5 business days. NMDOH recommends beginning the renewal process at least 30 to 45 days before expiration to avoid any gap in the patient's legal access to medical cannabis.

There is no fee for renewal. Paper renewal applications are no longer accepted.

Medical professionals have a legal right to recommend cannabis as a treatment in any state, as protected by the Medical Marijuana and Cannabidiol Research Expansion Act (Title III section 301) which became law on December 2, 2022, and the First Amendment (established by a 2004 United States Supreme Court decision to uphold earlier federal court rulings that doctors, and their patients have a fundamental Constitutional right to freely discuss treatment options).

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