Minnesota
Push at the State Capitol to keep Minnesota's medical cannabis program viable
There are 51,000 people registered in Minnesota’s medical marijuana program, and there’s growing concern that new rules for obtaining a license to grow and sell both recreational and medicinal marijuana could jeopardize the medicinal program.
Maren Schroeder is a consultant and lobbyist for Blunt Strategies and has worked with state regulators as well as businesses in the medical marijuana program.
Schroeder told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS that current businesses that want to grow and sell products for recreational and medicinal use are facing economic challenges that could force them to pull out of the medicinal marijuana program.
“I think we’re going to see the large operators forced to pull out,” said Schroeder. “They would have to put up a pretty large risk in order to grow cannabis for medical cannabis because if it didn’t sell as medical cannabis, it would have to be destroyed.”
Schroeder said that for every single cannabis plant growers produce for recreational use, they have to produce two plants for the medical marijuana program. And, Schroder added, those same business licenses require growers to separate their recreational product from their medicinal product, which is not cost-effective.
“Cannabinoid products cannot be done together,” said Schroeder. “They can use the same equipment, but they have to run a medical batch, stop, clean, and then run an adult-use batch. It’s just incredibly inefficient.”
Patrick McClellan is a medicinal marijuana patient. He told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS the larger producers would not want to cover those expenses and, if they pull out of the program, medicinal marijuana could collapse in Minnesota.
“People with ALS, people with cancer, people with muscular dystrophy like I have, should really be getting their medical advice from a doctor and from a pharmacist,” said McClellan. “We lose the high-potency medications, we lose housing protections, we lose employment protections, hospital protections, and we get higher prices.”
Schroeder and McClellan said they are working with state lawmakers to adjust the rules and keep the medicinal marijuana program viable.
A St. Cloud Tech ninth-grader won the Minnesota State High School League Clay Shooting championship on Friday.
Allie Lauer won the title with a score of 99 and reverse run of 83, while second-place finisher Isabella Blaz (Rosemount) also scored a 99 but a reverse run of 54. LeRoy-Ostrander’s Kimberly Volkart finished in third place with a score of 98.
MSHSL:
“I was nervous coming in because the other girls are older,” Lauer said. “It was nice weather today and things worked out well. Your average (score) doesn’t really matter. Just keep a good mindset and don’t focus on the scores.”
BOYS CLAY SHOOTING CHAMPIONSHIP
Proctor sophomore Lane Graves took home the championship after a grueling three-way, two-round shoot-off against Rushford-Peterson’s Colton Ronnenberg (second place) and Prior Lake’s Jack Benedict.
After Benedict was eliminated in the first shoot-off, Graves outlasted Ronnenberg with a 9-7 win in round two.
TEAM CLAY SHOOTING CHAMPIONSHIP
The Bemidji Lumberjacks took the team title with a total score of 487, one ahead of Lakeville South and five better than both Stewartville and Spring Grove.
St. Cloud’s Stanley Cup Champion Nate Schmidt [GALLERY]
Former St. Cloud Cathedral and University of Minnesota standout Nate Schmidt will bring the Stanley Cup to St. Cloud on August 25th. Here’s a look at his career through photos.
REDWOOD FALLS
— The 64-year-old Redwood Falls man
killed in a rollover crash Saturday in Redwood County
was fleeing police in his vehicle at the time, according to information from the Redwood County Sheriff’s Office.
Francis Albert Rohlik was pronounced dead at the scene of the crash at approximately 7:22 p.m. on June 27. He was northbound on Redwood County Road 7 north of
Belview
when his vehicle left the roadway and rolled at the intersection with 400th Street in Kintire Township, according to
an accident report
by the
Minnesota State Patrol.
Rohlik was not wearing a seat belt, the State Patrol reported. According to the Redwood County Sheriff’s Office, he was ejected from the vehicle during the crash.
Shortly before the crash, at approximately 7:19 p.m. Saturday, law enforcement officers attempted to stop his vehicle for traffic violations on County Road 7 near Belview. The driver accelerated away from deputies and a brief pursuit ensued. After approximately three miles, the vehicle lost control and rolled over near the intersection with 400th Street, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies immediately administered medical aid to the driver. However, he was pronounced dead at the scene. Rohlik was the only occupant in the vehicle.
Assisting agencies included the Minnesota State Patrol, the Yellow Medicine County Sheriff’s Office, Belview Fire Department, Belview First Responders, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, CentraCare Ambulance, and North Memorial AirCare. The Minnesota State Patrol is investigating the crash.
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