Nearly 50 Medical Marijuana Treatment Center licenses have expired
There was a lot in play at this week’s Cannabis Control Commission meeting, from social consumption to the challenges faced by Social Equity applicants. Through all the noise and healthy debate though, one slide that was only briefly addressed caught our attention.
Headed “MMJ Licensing and Registration Data,” it’s a simple snapshot of the state’s Medical Use of Marijuana program, which has been operating since 2015 and began reporting sales information in the Commission’s seed-to-sale tracking system in 2019.
As of May 11, 2023, there are 101 Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers (MTC) licensed to commence operations, with 94,792 Certified Active Patients. What’s notable is that while there are 42 provisional MTC applicants in the pipeline, there are 45 which let their licenses to sell medical cannabis expire. That’s hardly shocking considering that there are nearly 800 fewer Certified Patients than there were at this time last year.
The domino effect has also impacted the number of Active Caregivers who grow for patients. In a less dramatic yet still similar pattern to Maine, where a recent report by that state’s Office of Cannabis Policy (OCP) on the Maine Medical Use of Cannabis Program (MMCP) showed “over 1350 caregivers exit the program from the end of 2021 to the end of January 2023,” Mass has lost more than 150 Active Caregivers since last year.
Meanwhile, on Beacon Hill, the final House budget for FY24 includes $3,684,738 for the state’s MMJ program, while the Senate Ways & Means Budget has the number just a bit lower at $3,451,738, signaling that the final should land somewhere in that range.
