Three-fourths of Ohio medical pot dispensaries not yet open
Ohio has allowed the sale of medical marijuana for three months, but less than a quarter of the dispensaries are operating.
Of the 56 dispensaries licensed in the state, only 13 have received certificates of operation, most recently gLeaf Medical Cannabis in Warren in northeast Ohio. Certificates are issued by the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy and are required before a dispensary opens.
“We are trying to make very clear to the dispensaries that have not yet received their certificate of operation how important it is,” Erin Reed, a lawyer with the state Board of Pharmacy, said Thursday morning during the medical marijuana advisory committee meeting.
The Board of Pharmacy, she said, is continually checking in with the 43 dispensaries to see what issues are keeping them from obtaining a certificate.
“Those really run the gamut,” Reed said. The issues range from city council ordinances that prohibit medical marijuana facilities to physical issues with the dispensaries, she said.
“We are staying in very close contact with them,” Reed said.
Franklin County has five dispensaries, all of them in Columbus, but only Terrasana Cannabis Co. on Grandview Avenue is open. A line of patients wrapped around the dispensary when it opened March 26.
The other Columbus dispensaries are Greenleaf Apothecaries, 111 Vine St.; 127 OH, 1361 Georgesville Road; Harvest of Ohio, 2950 N. High St.; and Verdant Creations, on Cassady Avenue.
Ohio’s medical marijuana sales started Jan. 16 at the CY+ dispensary in Wintersville in northeast Ohio and three other dispensaries. Statewide sales totaled $3,433,573 through Sunday, with 456 pounds of plant material sold. Tinctures (liquid extract) hit dispensary shelves April 3. When it comes to medical marijuana sales, Ohio is on par with Pennsylvania in terms of sales for those 3 months, Reed said.
Cultivators in Ohio who grow medical marijuana also have a long way to go. The state has awarded 16 Level-1 licenses (for operations up to 25,000 square feet) and only eight have certificates of operation. The state also awarded 13 Level-2 licenses (up to 3,000 square feet), and nine have certificates of operation. Certificates are issued by the Ohio Department of Commerce and are required before a cultivator opens.
There have been 28,275 medical marijuana recommendations in Ohio and 24,556 registered patients with medical marijuana recommendations through March. Of those, 1,947 are veterans and 128 have a terminal diagnosis. The most common condition for medical marijuana is chronic pain with 18,248 patients, followed by post-traumatic stress disorder with 4,371 patients.
The average price of a oneday supply (2.83 grams) of medical marijuana has been about $47, according to Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program. Insurance does not cover medical marijuana.