The US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced that the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) awarded 900 federal medical cannabis registrations, which might be like licenses.
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Federal Medical Cannabis Progress
They were all won by qualifying state-licensed medical marijuana dispensaries under the US Attorney General’s order implementing Schedule III controls for certain medical marijuana activities.
The registrations mark the first phase of implementing the Attorney General’s April 23rd order establishing a federal regulatory framework for medical marijuana businesses while maintaining federal controls under the Controlled Substances Act (CSA).
So underground legacy weed and state-legal adult-use cannabis from a dispensary remain federally illegal as Schedule I drugs.
The DOJ said the initial federal registrations include more than 900 dispensaries across Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Dakota, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia. Each dispensary was required to satisfy applicable federal requirements, including successful completion of DEA’s pre-registration investigation, before receiving federal registration.
So unfortunately, none in New Jersey won, according to their release.
They did not issue a list of the names of the federal medical cannabis license winners.
However, the Marijuana Herald reported that the large Multi-State Operator (MSO) Trulieve announced it won a license. It has a large chain of dispensaries in Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Trulieve also owns adult-use cannabis licenses in New Jersey.
According to Marijuana Moment, the DEA has said it will not issue federal medical cannabis licenses in states that also adult-use cannabis.
In addition, according to Cannabis Wise Guys consultant Max Jackson explained that the feds seem to want to create a federal medical cannabis ecosystem that is more federally legal than the many state-legal cannabis companies.
DOJ and DEA Moving Forward with Federal Medical Marijuana
“The American people deserve access to the best medical treatments in the world,” said Attorney General Todd Blanche in a release.
“The regulated distribution of medical marijuana by the applicants that have been granted registration by the Drug Enforcement Administration will help ensure broader access to chronic pain treatment and the safety of the American people,” he noted.
The Department of Justice will continue prosecuting illegal marijuana trafficking and related criminal activity in accordance with federal law,” Blanche declared.
DEA is beginning with dispensaries that submitted applications within the initial 60-day period established by the order and meet applicable federal requirements.
To qualify, applicants must operate under a state medical marijuana regulatory framework consistent with federal law and the United States’ international treaty obligations.
A United Nations Treaty mandates that the DEA function in many ways like the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission.
Federal Medical Cannabis Progress Issues
State licensure alone does not automatically grant federal registration. Registered dispensaries will be subject to applicable federal requirements, including security, recordkeeping, inventory controls, and other safeguards governing the handling of controlled substances.
DEA will continue processing dispensary applications and issuing registrations to qualifying dispensaries through a phased registration process while maintaining its regulatory and enforcement responsibilities under federal law. DEA is also reviewing registration applications from medical marijuana manufacturers and distributors, which supply medical marijuana to dispensaries. Those applications require additional review, including facility inspections, production controls, and quota determinations.
Under the Attorney General’s order, qualifying manufacturers, distributors, and dispensaries that applied within the initial 60-day period and whose applications remain pending may continue to engage in medical marijuana transactions with other qualified applicants and with newly registered entities as their applications remain pending, subject to the order’s requirements. Information for applicants and newly registered entities can be found here.
The Attorney General’s order applies to defined qualifying medical marijuana activities. Notably, it does not authorize recreational marijuana or other marijuana activities outside its scope. Marijuana not covered by the order remains subject to Schedule I controls. The broader proposed rescheduling of marijuana is being considered through a separate administrative proceeding under the Controlled Substances Act.
Medical Cannabis Progress Over History
“For the first time, the federal government is recognizing and registering the medical cannabis dispensaries that patients fought to establish. This is a tremendous victory for patient access and an opportunity to build on 30 years of progress,” Americans for Safe Access Founder and President Steph Sherer said in a release.
“Thirty years ago, patients turned to the states because Washington refused to recognize their medicine,” she added. “Washington is recognizing the very programs those patients built. As we approach the 30th anniversary of California’s Proposition 215, it is hard to imagine a more powerful demonstration of how far patient advocacy has brought us.”
