THC you at trial: Wrongful termination claim over CBD oil use avoids dismissal

A recent opinion by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana in New Orleans ruled that a jury was needed to decide a case after an employer terminated a disabled employee for failing a drug test because of her lawful CBD oil use. The ruling, which applies to employers in Louisiana, highlights the difficulties employers face in dealing with medicinal marijuana-related accommodations.

What is CBD oil?

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a chemical found in marijuana that’s becoming more and more accepted as a legitimate treatment for health conditions, such as chronic pain, migraines, anxiety, inflammation, and insomnia. In fact, in 2018, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved a CBD-based oil to treat epilepsy.

CBD doesn’t contain tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), which is the psychoactive ingredient found in marijuana that produces a high. The chemical can be found in hemp, which contains no THC, and cannabis (marijuana). Nevertheless, the FDA has warned that companies manufacturing CBD have been using cannabis for production and as a result, THC can be found in most CBD-marketed products.

Play along

In 2017, a doctor recommended that an IT analyst suffering from hemiplegic migraines begin using non-psychoactive hemp-based CBD oil to help manage her pain. The employee, who worked completely from home, had a well-documented history with these recurrent and unmanageable migraines that periodically required her to take extended leaves of absence.