During this blog, I will touch on several aspects concerning the differences between Legal and Non-Legal Medical Marijuana and the facilities which dispense this medicine. To begin, let us keep in mind that the semantics of all of this will change. The legalities of the matter will also change based on their geographical location and ordinances set by the Cities, Counties and States which the facilities operate within.
The term, “Medical Marijuana” or “Cannabis” should be applied to the medicine for those patients whom are in true medical need of it. I am a former Collective Operator and have extensive experience on the subject matter which I will be presenting. This information will be straight and factual. I will leave my opinions for later in the blog.
Now, legally, according to State and County guidelines you should first receive a doctor’s recommendation before going to your local dispensary to obtain your legal medical marijuana. First, it is up to you to do your due diligence. You can go online and verify that the doctors’ license is valid through the American Medical Association before paying for your recommendation. You might be surprised at what you find. This is the same verification process which the Dispensaries will follow when you arrive.
Here comes the interesting part. Let’s say that you’ve received a valid recommendation. Please do not think that you have a valid State Medical Marijuana Card just because the doctor’s office has issued you a plastic ID card with your picture on it. Technically, if you are pulled over and have Medical Marijuana in your possession, a police officer can confiscate your medicine at his digression which means that you’ll have to show up at court and show your proper documentation to get it back. To remedy this circumstance you would set an appointment with your County Heath Board and pay the fee to obtain your State ID card which acts similar to your state License or ID card and the police can verify it on site. Remember, they cannot verify your doctor issued recommendation without calling the doctor and then checking the medical license which they will not do.
Once you’ve received your valid doctor’s recommendation or State ID card you’ll want to find a reputable establishment to get your medicine from. Unfortunately you’ll find that many of these so called Collectives or Dispensaries are very unprofessional. It feels almost odd when you enter and even more odd when you are let in to choose your medicine. First, you will be required to fill out a form which is an agreement between you and the collective that states that you agree to be part of their collective and them to act as your caregiver. They will take a copy of your ID and recommendation and verify that the documentation is valid. This goes back to my previous statement about doing your due diligence. If they find that the doctor’s license is invalid then you will or should, according to law, be turned away.
Finally, let’s say that you’ve come this far and have now selected a medicine which you will try for your condition but you’re still wondering if you are following the rules and guidelines properly. Please keep in mind that, even though you have followed the rules, others may have not. The chances are slim that, if you’ve done your part to follow the rules, you’d be at risk if there were some sort of legal matter which arose. An example would be if the police entered the establishment to enforce a violation and you happened to be there. Most likely you’d be asked to vacate the establishment which they conducted their assessment. Based on my numerous phone conversations with the County, City Attorneys and such, the counties simply refer to all Dispensaries, Collectives, Co-Op’s and Delivery Services as “Dispensaries” whether the owners or you like it or not. No matter how it boils down and no matter if they have a Non-Profit Corporation, State Sellers Permit or Local Business License, the facility is still dispensing Medical Marijuana to its members or patients and the County will classify it as such. Once again, it comes back to semantics. The dispensaries can call itself a Collective and call their solicitation a donation and not a purchase, but if they end up in court it will be an uphill battle to prove to a jury that it is such. Although, when it comes down to it and a Collective is operating in accordance then it would most likely not be in the interest of the City or County to pursue such an action and ultimately waste tax payers dollars for a case which will be dismissed.
In Conclusion, we’ve asked the question, “Whether or not it is Legal or Non-Legal Medical Marijuana”. One final thought on this subject is that even though the state has granted you the right, the Federal Government still has not. The current administration has stepped back in regards to enforcing federal law concerning this matter, except in extreme violations. Now, how does this affect you? Unless you are grossly violating the guidelines it does not really affect you. It would not be practical in any sense for a federal officer to seek out a legitimate patient for a misdemeanor violation. This should affect the Dispensaries before the patients. From the patient’s standpoint, they should follow the state, County and City guidelines to be safe. As far as for the Dispensaries and Collectives, that is for another blog.
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