Patients who have long been eligible to benefit from Maine’s medical marijuana law are looking forward to actually obtaining prescribed relief, once regional marijuana dispensaries are able to open throughout the state.
The dispensary system was authorized by voters last year for patients suffering from cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS and other serious ailments. But it appears that cautious implementation will keep them waiting a while longer.
Such delay is both regrettable and inevitable. The tasks of licensing businesses to distribute marijuana, and issuing local permits for clinics to operate, have required considerable analysis and debate. With an important deadline approaching, it’s not clear how licenses will be awarded.
Sanford has been approached by several potential applicants, but the town decided last week to keep a moratorium in effect while awaiting a clearer picture of how medical marijuana clinics will be regulated by the state. The City Council in Brewer, also deciding it needed more time to review the emerging landscape, extended its moratorium another six months. Moratoriums are under consideration in many other cities and towns throughout the state.
Sanford’s moratorium is set to expire July 20. Representatives of two companies recently visited the town to lay out preliminary proposals for dispensaries and growing operations. One of them told Sanford officials that establishing a regional growing center and dispensary could create a substantial number of jobs.
Humanitarian and economic arguments aside, potential operators are competing for eight licenses while facing a time crunch. The state deadline for applications is June 25.
After Sanford’s council voted down a proposal to lift the moratorium, chairman Joseph Hanslip said the situation remains too uncertain. “There are too many unanswered questions, too many ”˜likelys’ and ”˜probablys.’” he said.
It’s hard to blame either the task force or municipalities for deliberating at length over the establishment of marijuana dispensaries here. The legitimate concerns of patients, local officials and law enforcement need careful consideration. Recently the Maine Civil Liberties Union flagged a new concern ”“ the importance of preserving patient privacy, and providing due process in the issuance or revocation of patient registration cards.
It’s in everyone’s interest for the system to be well-organized, appropriately strict and fair. At the same time, the task force and local officials should be mindful of a patient’s perspective: Every day of delay is a day of pain relief postponed.
— Questions? Comments? Contact Managing Editor Nick Cowenhoven at nickc@journaltribune.com.
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