Mississippi medical cannabis program developing at rapid pace – Mississippi’s Best Community Newspaper

Mississippi medical hashish program growing at fast tempo

Revealed 8:55 am Saturday, October 29, 2022

NATCHEZ — Mississippi’s medical hashish program is shifting forward quickly with various compliance points being labored out, state well being officers mentioned Thursday.

A model new division with three staffers, quickly to be 9, is overseeing “a brand-new program that no state company has had any expertise with,” mentioned State Well being Officer Dr. Daniel Edney.

“It’s sort of like constructing the jet because it’s already been flying,” Edney mentioned.

Lawmakers handed the Medical Hashish Act in late January and by July 1, the state began taking license purposes. 

Kris Jones Adcock, Mississippi Medical Hashish Program director with the Mississippi State Division of Well being, mentioned this 120-day turnaround is “one of many quickest within the nation.”

The state has issued licenses to 47 cultivators, eight processors, three disposal entities, two testing amenities, 4 transportation entities, 138 dispensaries, 117 practitioners, 491 work permits and 406 sufferers as of Thursday.

In Natchez and Adams County to date, there may be one provisionally licensed medical hashish dispensary listed on the Mississippi State Division of Well being’s licensee listing, Highest Care LLC at 131 Jefferson Davis Blvd. Suite D. There are additionally solely 136 of 138 licensed dispensaries listed by the Division of Income, that means different licenses might quickly comply with.

A second vendor, Coles Creek Hashish LLC, with lists its deal with as 29 Pink Fox Drive, Natchez, has marketed a “Southwest Mississippi Hashish Convention” in Natchez to disseminate info to healthcare suppliers and to the neighborhood at massive. The Natchez Conference Middle is booked for 2 days on Nov. 11 and 12 for this convention, led by Rus Fairbanks MD of Vidalia, Louisiana.

Associates of Coles Creek Hashish couldn’t be reached for remark on the time of this publication. State well being officers mentioned they’re legally unable to talk to any pending licenses not listed as a result of they’re certain to a confidentiality settlement with the possible enterprise homeowners.

A prime concern of the state’s main well being company is to forestall the diversion of hashish to unlawful markets. 

“We promote compliance throughout this provisional interval,” Adcock mentioned. To do that state has been conducting “pop-up visits” or unannounced inspections and responding to public complaints. 

“Each pop-up go to we’ve finished to date has been a possibility for training,” she mentioned. “Nothing has gone with out a blemish. Individuals do have questions and compliance points and we work by means of these compliance points. These on-site visits give us a possibility to try this.”

One of many points talked about by state well being officers has been failure to appropriately tag vegetation to forestall diversion.

Whereas each single applicant has had its setbacks, state well being officers emphasised that every one licenses are provisional for that exact cause.

“That provisional interval is what that is for,” mentioned Liz Sharlott, who’s the pinnacle of communications on the Mississippi State Division of Well being. “It’s our alternative to teach them. Everybody to date has had points with totally different ranges of corrective actions.”

Adams County Sheriff Travis Patten mentioned he’s involved concerning the lack of awareness obtainable concerning the medical hashish program and the way regulation enforcement will likely be anticipated to implement compliance.

“We don’t know sufficient about what it’s going to ivolve,” he mentioned. “I personally don’t know sufficient about it. We’ve been despatched senate payments and various things. Legislation enforcement must be skilled, those which might be going to be referred to as upon to implement these guidelines and rules.”

Up to now, Patten mentioned his division hasn’t skilled a difficulty with somebody being arrested for possession of marijuana with a medical card. Nevertheless, Patten mentioned he had individuals permitted to make use of marijuana ask to work on the sheriff’s workplace, which presents one other problem when hiring officers. His division does conduct random drug testing however hasn’t employed anybody that makes use of medical marijuana.

“We are able to’t rent somebody with something that’s going to hinder their job efficiency,” he mentioned. “It doesn’t matter if it’s marijuana or aspirin. If we really feel prefer it’s going to hinder you from having the ability to perform the duties you’re referred to as to do, then in fact we gained’t be capable of put you in that place.”