The number of people who have registered for Ohio's medicinal marijuana program has doubled in a just a week, according to data released yesterday by the state's Pharmacy Board.
According to the board, 2,170 people have completed registration for a card that will allow them to purchase medicinal marijuana. That doubles the number from last week, when 1,062 people had officially registered.
Authorized physicians use the registry, which opened Dec. 3, to recommend other caregivers and patients suffering from conditions like cancer, AIDS, post-traumatic stress disorder and a number of others. The state then confirms the patient's identity, after which the patient or caregiver can sign up for the card. That card will allow holders to purchase marijuana from certified dispensaries when they open.
The first dispensaries should be open by early 2019, officials at the Pharmacy Board say, though they caution that early supply could sell out quickly as certified marijuana growers continue to work to get up and running and produce crops.
Originally, Ohio's medicinal marijuana program was supposed to be up and running by September. But a number of snags — including slow licensing and a lawsuit over the way the state scored applications from aspiring marijuana businesses — has pushed that date back.
The state announced last week that the first dispensary for medicinal marijuana has been licensed — a store called CY+ in eastern Ohio’s Jefferson County. That store will open just as soon as the labs that inspect the marijuana start up and release the state’s first batch of product.
The registration to buy medicinal marijuana costs $50 a person, or $25 if you're a veteran or caregiver.
The Pharmacy Board says physicians have filed 3,460 recommendations via the system.
Registered buyers will be limited to a 90-day supply of any medicinal marijuana product, officials say.
That's measured by THC content and is the equivalent of eight ounces of cannabis at or below 23 percent THC or about five ounces of cannabis with higher concentrations of THC. Topical forms of medical cannabis can total no more than 26 grams of THC. Buyers can purchase up to roughly 10 grams of THC in edible products, or cannabis oil for vaporization as long as it contains no more than 53 grams of THC.
