Federal drug officials are warning Georgia to shelve its plans to be the first state to allow pharmacies to dispense medical marijuana products.
News outlets report that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration on Nov. 27 warned pharmacies that dispensing medical marijuana violates federal law.
Because it’s a prescription medication, just like any other. It’s far more convenient to pick up prescription just like you do any other.
There will be far fewer dispensaries than pharmacies, so less choice, more driving, and worse hours.
Dispensaries vastly outnumber pharmacies in the towns I’ve lived in (Oregon, Colorado, New Mexico) and also have more convenient hours (Denver they’re 8 am - 10 pm). I also have doubts about the varieties they’d stock and the quality. Being prescribed cannabis in most states means you shop at regular stores and get a discount, or in non-rec states that you can go there at all - and they tend to have a tremendous variety. It’s not like being prescribed a pharmaceutical that comes in one brand and a generic pill like most prescriptions.
I’d also much rather talk to someone who understands cannabis and cannabinoids topics - RSO, CBD, edibles, dabbing and so forth - than a pharmacist. I would anticipate a pharmacy giving much worse overall service than a dispensary.
Your experience is nothing like what Georgia has going on.
Do you care to elaborate?
You should just look it up on norml.org for yourself really.
Basically though, GA has a very restrictive MMJ program with only low THC oil allowed at all and something like 6 dispensaries total in the whole state… Nothing like Colorado, Oregon, or New Mexico at all.
The option for pharmacies to dispense the super low THC oil was an idea to expand access in the state.
I’m aware and it’s not surprising that they have an anemic MMJ program. If they wanted to expand access, there are plenty of other states to emulate vs. handing business to Walgreens and CVS. Perhaps just expand the number of dispensaries.
It doesn’t sound like Georgia has anything going on, based on the article.
It’s virtually nothing, yes.
Norml.org is a great resource to understand what the current laws and options are on a state by state basis.
Canada legalized years ago and there are dispensaries all over the place in cities! If you’re in living in rural areas obviously there’s not as many, but still one or two within reasonable distance.
Remote areas have their stuff mailed in.
Right. Where I lived in Denver, there were 4 dispensaries in wakking distance and 1 pharmacy, Walgreens.
The only exceptions are the small conservative towns that banned dispensaries in their city limits or counties saying “we don’t want DRUGS in our city!!” So the stores set up just outside of city limits and the cities have just as much weed and no tax revenue.
If you’re talking about the Springs, the whole county has banned recreational. Manitou is able to have them because it’s a home-rule city.
It’s not the county. Palmer Lake has dispensaries now, too.
Yeah, except no. Again, most Colorado municipalities are home-rule.
Edit: I like how I linked directly to the county showing that El Paso county does not allow recreational cannabis retailers, including the ordinance banning retail (13-01) and still got downvoted.
I was think of some towns on the Front Range… Greeley, Fort Collins, Windsor. I recall that about Springs but they still have medical, right?
Yeah, there are medical dispensaries on every corner it seems. It’s not nearly as conservative as generally portrayed, it’s just that the only people that vote in local elections are the focus on the family crowd so we end up with shit.
I agree with the other commenter here. I could see this going the other way for smaller towns or more rural areas, but where I am at right now there are 4 dispensaries and 2 pharmacies in a 5 mile radius.
It’s also Sunday; one of those pharmacies is closed and the other one will close at 12 in the afternoon. As for the dispensaries, one of them will close at 5 and the others will close at 10 ~no different than any other day of the week.
Getting rid of dispensaries in favor of pharmacies here would benefit nobody except for the drug companies.
The nearest pharmacy is two miles away. The neareat dispensary is a half mile away. The 2nd nearest is across the street from that one.
There are more dispensaries than there are pharmacies, bars, and churches in my state.