Tag Archives: dispensary

Massachusetts medical marijuana patients can grow their own medicine

March 31, 2013   admin

The Massachusetts Department of Public Health released draft regulations on March 29th. Considered one of the most thorough regulation efforts in medical marijuana states, commonwealth patients meeting low income and other requirements are allowed to grow their own cannabis medicine.

The requirements for patients or their caregiver for growing marijuana include:

  • Financial hardship – Defined by 133% of the national poverty level guidelines
  • Physical incapacity – to access reasonable transportation
  • Lack of MMTC – (Dispensary) within a reasonable distance and lack of delivery service available

Until the expected 35 dispensaries are up and running it’s safe to assume all patients will be allowed to cultivate medical marijuana in Massachusetts. Financial hardship is defined by an individual who is a recipient of MassHealth, or Supplemental Security Income, or the individual’s income does not exceed 133% of the federal poverty level, adjusted for family size. See the accompanying table.

Family Size Annual Income
1
$15,282
2
$20,628
3
$25,975
4
$31,322
5
$36,668
6
$42,015
7
$47,361
8
$52,708

Personal Caregiver means a person, registered by the Department, who is at least 21 years old who has agreed to assist with a registered qualifying patient’s medical use of marijuana, and is not the registered qualifying patient’s certifying physician. Where a registered qualifying patient is under 18 years of age, he or she must have a personal caregiver who is his or her parent or legal guardian. An employee of a hospice provider, nursing, or medical facility providing care to a qualifying patient may serve as a personal caregiver, including to patients under 18 years of age.

Caregivers not working at a medical facility can’t be compensated for any duties or have more than 1 patient. While a qualifying patient can have a limit of 2 caregivers, only one caregiver is allowed to cultivate marijuana for the patient.

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The regulations try to limit the number of patients growing at home by requiring all dispensaries to provide free or low cost marijuana to qualified low income patients. Patients are further limited to possessing a 2 month supply of marijuana, which the agency considers to be 10 ounces. Absent are any plant limits, other than enough to supply the patient for 2 months. Other interesting regulations call for all dispensaries to have vaporizers for sale, dispensaries must grow all their own marijuana and bake their own edibles.

While this guide overviews the regulations concerning Massachusetts patientsgrowing their own medicine, patients considering cultivation are encouraged to read the regulations 725.035: Hardship Cultivation Registration which can be found here.

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CA Supreme Court Rules Storefront MMJ Dispensaries Legal

January 26, 2013   mike

For years, medical marijuana dispensaries in California were deemed illegal even in the eyes of the law. Over 700 medical marijuana dispensaries have been shut down in the Los Angeles area in the past year alone due to an overwhelming voter ban in 2012. Thanks to final court ruling on Jan. 16, after years of struggling over the hot-button issue, the CA Court of Appeals held that storefront dispensaries are legal under California law, so long as they operate on a not for profit basis and adhere to certain corporate forms.

As a result, the California Supreme Court denied requests from the League of California Cities, the San Diego District Attorney’s Office, the Sacramento District Attorney’s Office, the Sonoma District Attorney’s Office, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office and the Los Angeles City Attorney to depublish or review the published decision in People v. Jackson.

This decision establishes that storefront medical marijuana dispensaries are unquestionably legal under California law and that local citizens cannot continue to rely on their now-discredited view that all sales of medical marijuana are illegal in order to support their ongoing attacks on state compliant medical marijuana dispensaries.

Another important impact of the recent court ruling is providing medical marijuana providers with a clear defense to state criminal charges. Specifically, the ruling held that in mounting a defense at trial.

With this ruling finally put in place, medical marijuana dispensaries and their owners now have a legal precedent to fall back on. This pro-marijuana dispensary movement only benefits the entrepreneurs who are now thinking of opening up their own treatment centers in places like Massachusetts, where voters recently approved a measure that makes marijuana legal for medicinal use.

As a result of this new MMJ-friendly landscape, conferences designed to answer the many questions that are tied with this controversial industry have begun to pop up. One such example is the upcoming Green Rush Conference on February 9 hosted by MMJ consulting start up DispensaryPermits.com.

With the goal of teaching potential dispensary owners how to get their piece of a billion dollar industry, they have recruited a team of successful marijuana entrepreneurs to educate the public. With the marijuana industry growing at an unprecedented pace, it will be interesting to see who will be next to cash in.

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Massachustts Medical Marijuana Entrepreneurs Prepare for January 1st DPH Regulations

December 09, 2012   mike

The medical marijuana ballot initiative Question 3 passed statewide in this November’s Presidential Election, with 63 percent of Massachusetts voters supporting it.

Only two communities statewide – Mendon and Lawrence – voted against Question 3. Stoughton voters favored it 60% to 40%, showing that the negative stigma associated with medical marijuana is changing.

The law would eliminate state criminal and civil penalties for the medical use of marijuana by qualifying patients. It allows patients meeting certain conditions to obtain medical marijuana produced and distributed by new state-regulated centers or, in specific hardship cases, to grow medical marijuana for their own use.

The new law would allow for up to 35 non-profit medical marijuana treatment centers to grow, process and provide marijuana to patients or their caregivers.

Proponents argue medical marijuana will ease the suffering of thousands of people with cancer, Parkinson’s disease, Crohn’s disease, multiple sclerosis, HIV/AIDS, glaucoma, and other debilitating conditions.

Advocates in the Legislature have attempted to pass medical marijuana legislation in Massachusetts for many years, but encountered stiff opposition along the way. This has all been erased with the passing of the new law, which will take effect on January 1, 2013.

Within 120 days of the law’s effective date, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health is required to issue regulations for the implementation of sections of the law dealing with registration of dispensaries (referred to as “nonprofit medical marijuana treatment centers”); registration of treatment center employees; hardship cultivation registrations for patients whose financial hardship, physical incapacity, or remote location is verified; and the issuance of registration cards for qualifying patients and caregivers.

The new law provides the Massachusetts DPH with extensive discretion on how to implement its provisions, including the registration and application process for patients, medical marijuana treatment centers and dispensaries. A review of the law suggests that these entities are required to provide only basic information such as names, addresses and, in some cases, “operating procedures”.

So, medical marijuana is coming to Massachusetts and that could turn out to be a very good thing for entrepreneurs in the Bay State looking to break into this lucrative industry. Luckily for those with enough drive and capital, companies such as DispenesaryPermits.com have been launched to provide potential medical marijuana dispensary owners with expert consultation services.

On the company’s website, comprehensive dispensary plan packages and business plans are offered that provide prospective dispensary owners with everything they need to obtain a Massachusetts dispensary license. DispensaryPermits.com urges anyone who is seriously interested in opening up a Massachusetts dispensary to begin preparing for the application due to the fact that the DPH will soon begin issuing its regulations within 120 days of the January 1st implementation date.

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LA Marijuana Dispensary Ban Suspended

September 07, 2012   Patrick

Huffington Post:

Medical marijuana patients in Los Angeles can exhale a sigh of relief. At least for now.

LA’s marijuana dispensary ban, which was set to go into effect in one week, has been temporarily suspended after patients and supporters delivered 50,000 signatures to force a referendum on the ban, the city clerk’s office told The Huffington Post Thursday.

The ban, which has the approval of Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Police Chief Charlie Beck, intends to shut down about 1,000 marijuana dispensaries in the city, including those that have complied with the law. Instead of using dispensaries, groups of three or fewer marijuana patients would be allowed to grow marijuana in their homes.
“We understand and appreciate the need for strict rules and regulations regarding dispensaries. But the outright ban went too far, and will result in many sick and infirm patients suffering needlessly,” Gary Carver, a medical marijuana user who suffers from glaucoma and was one of the petition’s signatories, said in a statement. “What we need is a thoughtful policy that allows us to get our medicine and protects communities, not a shortsighted ban that causes us pain and thwarts the will of the people.”

The city clerk’s office has 15 days to verify the signatures. If at least 27,425 signatures are verified, the City Council has 20 days to choose to either repeal the ban or to put it to the voters on the March 5, 2013 ballot.

Patients and supporters hope the ban will be repealed, but if it’s put to a vote, they say they’re confident Angelenos will support storefront access to medical marijuana.

Check out the public’s initial response to the ban on Twitter:


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