Kentucky officials have granted the state's first medical marijuana business license to an inspection agency and are also planning a lottery to award the first round of cultivation and processing licenses next month, the governor announced Thursday.
Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said at a press conference that the medical marijuana legalization law he signed last year will take effect “soon” to ensure patients have access to “life-changing medicine.” announced. The government is working with lawmakers to streamline the approval process.
To this end, the first approved medical cannabis license was awarded to KCA Labs, an existing testing facility working with the hemp industry.
“These facilities are responsible for testing all medical cannabis products before they reach Kentucky cardholders,” the governor said. “Our mission is to ensure Kentuckians with serious medical conditions have access to safe, high-quality, tested medical cannabis products.”
“As the first federally licensed medical cannabis business and laboratory, KCA will help us do just that, with the first licenses being offered to organizations who can help us do this safely. I’m very happy,” he said. “Safety compliance facilities like KCA ensure that all cannabis in Kentucky is held to the highest medical standards.”
During the press conference, Beshear also announced that a license lottery for cannabis growers and processors will be held on October 28th. The event will be hosted and livestreamed by the Kentucky Lottery Corporation, but the governor made it clear that “there will be no ping pong balls” used to determine which applicants will be selected.
The governor signed a bill earlier this year that moved the medical marijuana approval timeline forward by six months to allow for an early launch of the market.
“When we launched this program, our mission was to ensure that veterans suffering from cancer, multiple sclerosis, PTSD, and many others had access to safe, affordable medical cannabis. The goal was to do so.” “Today, we are taking another big step.”
At this time, no date has been set for the medical marijuana dispensary license lottery. Beshear said it was “likely” that it would happen in November, but the administration's reservations about a specific date mean officials could act sooner than the current expected schedule. Because I'm looking forward to it.
“They're making great strides. We've had so many dispensary applications that we've hired new people to process them. We have to do it right, and You have to do it well, and you only do something once, the first time,” he said. “So we will wait to announce that date to give Kentuckians full confidence in our commitment to safe medical cannabis surgeries and a fair process for who will participate when we begin.” ”
The Office of Medical Cannabis looks forward to working with all licensees to ensure eligible Kentuckians have safe access to high-quality medical cannabis products. 2/2
— Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis (@MedCanKY) September 26, 2024
The Kentucky Office of Medical Marijuana (OCM) has received approximately 5,000 applications for medical marijuana business licenses since a two-month period that ended earlier this month.
All told, Kentucky received about $28 million in non-refundable filing fees during that two-month period. There have been approximately 4,000 applications for dispensary licenses, and only 48 will be selected statewide under the legalization law Beshear signed last year, meaning each applicant will receive a license. That means the chance is about 1%.
The governor recently announced that once the cannabis program gets underway, he intends to rescind an executive order he issued last October to provide legal protections for patients with medical marijuana purchased from licensed out-of-state retailers. He also said that.
The governor also announced in June that the state Medical Licensing Board and Board of Nursing would simultaneously begin issuing permits for doctors and nurses to recommend medical marijuana to patients starting in July.
Mr. Beshear separately participated in a historic roundtable at the White House in March with Vice President Kamala Harris and other pardon recipients who received pardons under President Joe Biden's pardon proclamation.
After Biden issues his first amnesty proclamation in October 2022, Beshear said he is “actively considering” cannabis amnesty measures that states could take, and in the meantime, the public can petition for relief. encouraged. In 2021, he also talked about his desire to allow Kentucky farmers to grow and sell recreational cannabis across state lines.
Beshear filed federal comments in July supporting the Biden administration's cannabis rescheduling proposal, saying the reform would have a “substantive and meaningful impact” on patients, communities, businesses and research.
Separately, the governor has urged lawmakers to expand the medical marijuana program, and in January two independent advisory groups appointed by the governor announced more than 10 new proposals to make patients eligible for medical marijuana. It was announced that a unanimous resolution was passed recommending the addition of conditions.
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Meanwhile, the state Legislature last year limited funding to the medical marijuana regulatory agency that oversees the state program until an advisory committee determines there are “trends” in research supporting the therapeutic “effectiveness” of cannabis. A budget proposal containing the provisions was submitted to the governor. .
In January of this year, Kentucky lawmakers introduced a marijuana bill with the notable bill number HB 420. If passed, the bill would legalize and regulate marijuana for adults 21 and older, but the bill failed to pass in the Republican-controlled state Legislature this session.
A more limited legalization measure, HB 72, was introduced by Rep. Nima Kulkarni (D) earlier that month. This would eliminate all penalties for simple possession and use of marijuana by adults over 21, and would also allow adults to grow a small number of cannabis plants at home. However, commercial sales will remain prohibited. But that too died.
Last year, Kulkarni introduced a bill that would let voters decide whether to legalize use, possession and home cultivation. The lawmaker previously introduced a similar nonprofit legalization proposal for the 2022 session.
Former top federal health official under Clinton urges 'no' vote on Florida marijuana legalization ballot initiative
Former top federal health official under Clinton urges 'no' vote on Florida marijuana legalization ballot initiative
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