Marijuana Business Magazine - Issue 09, Oct 2017

New Jersey The Medicinal Marijuana Review Panel has recommended that the state’s health department add 43 conditions to the list of illnesses that would qualify patients to receive medical cannabis cards. Many of the suggested additions are variations of the same condition. For example, there are several categories of chronic pain, anxiety, migraines and fibromyalgia, among others. Other conditions recom- mended by the panel include arthritis, autism, asthma, opiate-use disorder and irritable bowel syndrome. New York New York’s medical marijuana dispensaries have been given permission to sell ointments, lozenges and chew- able tablets. The proposed regulations are intended to expand a program that’s been limited by its restrictions on allowable forms of cannabis – no smokable flower, for example – and a small patient pool. Regulators also hope to increase the number of participating physicians by cutting in half – to two hours – the time it takes a doctor to become registered to recommend MMJ. The new rules were expected to be in place as soon as September. North Dakota The state is in the market for a testing laboratory for its nascent medical marijuana program. The chosen lab will be responsible for collecting and testing samples from in-state marijuana cultivators. North Dakota’s medical marijuana program is expected to be up and running by mid-2018. Ohio Regulators don’t expect to issue the state’s first medi- cal marijuana cultivator licenses until around Novem- ber, at least a month later than growers expected. The new timeline could delay the startup of the state’s MMJ program beyond the planned September 2018 launch date. The state Department of Commerce’s announce- ment drew concern from the National Cannabis Industry Association of Ohio. The association’s president said Ohio cultivators will face difficulties getting the necessary local zoning approvals under the adjusted timeline. Washington state A dozen marijuana retail businesses in Washington state are employing an unusual strategy on the mergers and acquisitions front: package their assets together for a combination sale. In a move that’s being described as “unprecedented,” Seattle-based investment bank GRN Funds is asking $60 million-$70 million for the 12 retail cannabis firms. – Roger Fillion Note: Entries sourced from Marijuana Business Daily and other national and local news outlets. These developments occurred before this magazine’s September publication deadline, so some situations may have changed. 28 • Marijuana Business Magazine • October 2017