Saturday, January 25, 2025, 10:27AM |  16°
MENU
Advertisement
In an August photo, Mary Cease, 66, is a certified medical marijuana patient who uses marijuana for back pain.
1
MORE

Indiana County woman again denied Section 8 voucher due to medical marijuana treatments

Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette

Indiana County woman again denied Section 8 voucher due to medical marijuana treatments

The Indiana County Housing Authority has for a third time denied Mary Cease’s application for a Section 8 housing voucher because she uses medical marijuana, which is legal under Pennsylvania law but illegal under federal law.

Ms. Cease’s attorney, Judith Cassel, said Tuesday that she intends this week to file an appeal with the Indiana County Court of Common Pleas to overturn the denial.

The final determination may turn on one issue: Is Ms. Cease already a public housing resident or is she a new applicant?

Advertisement

Citing federal law, the U.S. Housing and Urban Development has twice issued guidance memoranda prohibiting admission of new residents to public housing or voucher programs if they use medical marijuana, even if state law allows it.

Pennsylvania Lt. Gov. John Fetterman shakes hands with staff on the opening day of Cresco Yeltrah medical marijuana dispensary on Monday, Feb. 25, 2019, in New Kensington.
Steve Twedt
New Kensington opens medical marijuana dispensary, as 'listening tour' for recreational use rolls along

At a formal hearing Sept. 18 at housing authority offices in Indiana, Ms. Cassel argued that Ms. Cease should be considered a current resident because she now lives in public housing overseen by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in Clymer, Indiana County.

The HUD memos, issued in 2011 and 2014, give the federally funded housing authorities discretion on a case-by-case basis to decide whether current residents using medical marijuana can stay in the program.

Executive Director Bonni Dunlap said at the Sept. 18 hearing that they consider Ms. Cease a new applicant because she is new to their program, a position that the hearing officer supported in denying Ms. Cease’s application. Ms. Dunlap declined to comment on the case Tuesday.

Advertisement

Ms. Cease uses medical marijuana to relieve chronic pain from multiple back surgeries and post-traumatic stress from earlier abuse. She has said she hopes to move into Section 8 housing located in a more urban area because of the lack of public transportation and other amenities where she lives now.

The housing authority first denied Ms. Cease’s application in June based on her medical marijuana use, then denied her appeal following an informal hearing July 23 and has now issued a third denial based on testimony at the Sept. 18 formal hearing.

Steve Twedt: stwedt@post-gazette.com or 412-263-1963.

First Published: October 3, 2018, 12:00 p.m.

RELATED
Seen in an August 2018 photo Mary Cease is a certified medical marijuana patient who uses marijuana for back pain.
Steve Twedt
Medical marijuana patient seeking Section 8 voucher loses in court
Mary Cease, 66, is a certified medical marijuana patient who uses marijuana for back pain. Indiana County Housing Authority has denied her application for a Section 8 housing voucher because of the marijuana use.
Steve Twedt
Public housing rejects Indiana County woman for legal use of medical marijuana
Mary Cease, 66, of Indiana County was previously denied a voucher by the Indiana County Housing Authority because she uses state-approved medical marijuana to relief chronic back pain from previous surgeries and post-traumatic stress from earlier abuse. On Tuesday, she received a second, formal hearing on her application. A decision by the hearing officer is not expected for weeks.
Steve Twedt
Indiana County housing officials weigh medical marijuana patient's application
SHOW COMMENTS (0)  
Join the Conversation
Commenting policy | How to Report Abuse
If you would like your comment to be considered for a published letter to the editor, please send it to letters@post-gazette.com. Letters must be under 250 words and may be edited for length and clarity.
Partners
Advertisement
Around 450,000 Pennsylvanians enrolled in Affordable Care Act health insurance plans this year, but credits expire at the end of 2025, which will mean dramatic premium hikes in 2026 unless Congress votes for an extension.
1
business
Crunch time: 450K Pennsylvanians with Obamacare could see dramatic spikes in health care costs
Texas A&M's Shemar Stewart (4) runs off the field during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Auburn, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in Auburn, Ala.
2
sports
Ray Fittipaldo's first 7-round Steelers mock draft: Deep DL class too enticing?
Aliquippa boys basketball coach Nick Lackovich had to serve a one-game suspension Friday for an incident that occurred Saturday in a game against Imani Christian.(JJ LaBella/For the Post-Gazette)
3
sports
Coach Nick Lackovich and some of his Aliquippa boys basketball players handed ban by PIAA
Former Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger on the field before a game against the Colts on Sept. 29 in Indianapolis.
4
sports
'I don’t know that they’re that close, to be honest': Ben Roethlisberger is frustrated with the Steelers, too
Entrance to the U.S. Steel Mon Valley Works, Edgar Thompson Plant in Braddock.
5
business
Steelworkers make fresh plea to Trump to save U.S. Steel-Nippon deal
In an August photo, Mary Cease, 66, is a certified medical marijuana patient who uses marijuana for back pain.  (Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette)
Steve Mellon/Post-Gazette
Advertisement
LATEST business
Advertisement
TOP
Email a Story