More medical marijuana licenses to be awarded soon

Florida is getting more medical marijuana growers, potentially leading to greater access and cheaper products.

But would-be growers face a tight timeline — about two weeks — to apply.

The Department of Health posted its rules for the next round of applications late Tuesday. Under a law passed by the Florida Legislature in June, the department has to select five new growers by Oct. 3.

“It's not just unlikely. It is literally impossible,” Ben Pollara, who was instrumental in the passage of the medical marijuana constitutional amendment and now represents a coalition of medical marijuana businesses, said in a telephone interview Wednesday.

The law requires one of the new licenses go to a member of the Florida Black Farmers Association who participated in one of two class-action suits against the Department of Agriculture decades ago. That provision in the law was meant to offer black farmers who have traditionally been discriminated against a chance to compete.

The association didn’t respond to questions about how many of its members would qualify.

The five new licensees would add to 12 already in existence. Five were awarded in August, and seven were already in existence under a limited medical marijuana law the Legislature passed prior to voters approving the constitutional amendment in 2016.

Would-be growers can get an application online.

These will be the last growing licenses issued until 100,000 patients are in the state’s medical marijuana registry. Just over 37,000 are registered now.

Despite that, the Department of Health intends to award those four future licenses in this round of applications as well. The four growers awarded these licenses, though, won’t be able to start growing marijuana until the state hits the 100,000-patient mark.

Information from the News Service of Florida was used in this report.