The state has reversed its decision when it comes to letting medical marijuana dispensaries stay open while they wait for a license.
In September, the state said marijuana shops would need to close their doors by December 15th. If they didn’t, they’d risk not getting a license at all.
Now, the state says they can stay open and not risk their license.
Andrew Brisbo is the director of the department overseeing medical marijuana licenses. He says this does not automatically authorize facilities to operate before they get a license.
“What we’re looking at is how existing operation is considered in part of the licensure process and not considering it an impediment.”
He says the decision came after listening to patients and dispensary owners. Patients have specific needs for medical marijuana. The patients said closing their dispensaries could harm them.
“That’s something that we kept hearing is it can’t just be replaced with the caregiver model because they have those very specific needs. So it will allow them to continue those relationships.
He says the feedback played a big role in the decision.
“To ensure continuous access for the most vulnerable of patients it was important that we consider how we might make an adjustment to allow for these existing facilities to transition to the new regulatory program.”
Brisbo said the decision does not prevent law enforcement from shutting down illegal shops.