Medical marijuana patients with valid and qualified conditions may now buy whole flower cannabis in Virginia starting this Friday.
Patients in the state may now buy up to 4 oz. of cannabis flower each month, according to WRIC. The new regulations went into effect on September 1st. Patients in Virginia could only get items made from the plant’s oils before the changes.
Two cannabis businesses in Virginia are at the forefront of the movement. Columbia Care in Portsmouth and gLeaf Medical in Richmond have been cooperating and prepping the big change.
The day was a “major milestone” for Virginia medical marijuana patients, according to Raymond Hernandez, Columbia Care Virginia’s pharmacist in charge and market director. This kind of cannabis was in great request, according to Hernandez, and patients had been demanding it for years.
Hernandez said, “A lot of the products we do make by extracting the oil of the plant, are highly effective but you do lose some of those minor cannabinoids and terpenes.”
State legislators approved laws allowing the sale of smokable cannabis earlier in the year. The legislation went into force on September 1st. Before to this, cannabis retailers had been offering products made from the plant’s oil.
The first batch of whole flower cannabis at Colombia Care and gLeaf Medical was evaluated by the Virginia Board of Pharmacy, and both businesses got full clearance inside the past 48 hours.
Adult-use marijuana sales are not anticipated before 2023, despite the fact that the legalization legislation went into effect on July 1. Although cannabis home grows are now decriminalized, however they are not yet legal, since that portion of the legalization law will not enter into force until 2023. Adults 21 and over may legally carry up to 1 oz. of cannabis flower, and cannabis sharing and use in private settings is permitted.
In the Richmond region and neighboring counties, cannabis-related convictions have decreased by 90% as a result of the changes.
A lengthy queue of people formed outside of gLeaf Medical in Richmond today.
According to gLeaf’s Samer Abiloma, whole flower cannabis is the company’s most favored and lowest concentrated type of cannabis.
“This is a big day for all of us in the Commonwealth but most importantly for the medical patients who have been asking for this and seeking this form of medication,” said Hernandez.
Medicinal cardholders with a doctor’s certification and a medical marijuana registration card from the Virginia Board of Pharmacy are the only ones who can buy it. For e ach patient, the legal limit is 4 oz. of botanical marijuana per month.
Patients can’t buy more than a 90-day supply in a 90-day period, even if they buy additional cannabis.
Eight additional sites in Virginia are being considered by the businesses.
