Patient Access to Medical Marijuana Should Be Greater Priority

Now that adult-use marijuana is legal in New Jersey, towns throughout the Garden State seem to be springing into action restricting sales and production within their jurisdiction. What I am concerned about in this frenzy to set up this new market--or in many cases block it from happening in certain parts of the state --is medical marijuana patients are being overlooked. For far too long, New Jersey patients have been paying the highest cost in the nation for medical marijuana to treat their qualifying conditions and have faced access challenges because the supply is far too limited to meet the growing demand. There is simply no competition in the market. In fact, there are just 16 dispensaries across the state to serve the over 110,000 registered medical marijuana patients. Instead of putting up more roadblocks, the state and local municipalities should be prioritizing patients who rely on medical marijuana for their health and wellness. As a first step, the state should act immediately to issue more permits to provide patients with greater access now and ensure they don’t face even greater challenges in the adult-use market when demand for product increases even more. And second, local municipalities should be welcoming these dispensaries to serve the medical needs of their residents.