Virginia marijauna accessibility, also spelled "marijuana" or "cannabis," is becoming increasingly impressive. While marijuana is not legal for recreational use, it can be accessed with a valid recommendation from a doctor.
Numerous dispensaries in the state sell various strains of marijuana, as well as cannabis-infused products such as oils, edibles, and tinctures. We recently published articles covering a few dispensaries like gLeaf Richmond VA and Columbia Care Portsmouth. But now that Virginia marijauna accessibility is on the rise, what does this mean for Virginians?
Keep reading to learn more insight into Virginia marijauna accessibility, including where to find dispensaries near you!
Searching on how to get a medical marijuanas card in VA? CannabisRxHealth is ready to help!
Contact us now to schedule your consultation and begin the first step in obtaining your medical cannabis card in Virginia today.
Virginia Dispensaries Open
While you cannot visit a dispensary without a medical marijuana card in Virginia, cardholders are able to order their cannabis online and have their medical marijuana delivered to their home. This is how Virginia marijauna accessibility has expanded over the last few years.
Even though to Virginia GOP is pushed legal recreational marijuana sales, the state is still not yet at the point that it allows retail marijuana. However, keep in mind, the Virginia Senate recently voted to hasten the timeline for recreational dispensaries. With this in mind, recreational sales for adults could start as soon as September 2022.
Virginia Recreational Dispensaries 2022?
While Virginia recreational dispensaries 2022 won't happen, the medical retail operations are set to begin distributing recreational cannabis to consumers. According to Marijuana Moment, this could happen as soon as September.
Regardless, Virginia marijauna accessibility is still increasing, which is good news for medical cannabis patients in the state.
Medical marijuana dispensaries currently operating will be able to serve the highly lucrative recreational market. This will allow consumers to buy safe, regulated products without resorting to the illicit market.
The proposed timeline also allows early sales to some large industrial hemp processors.
When Will Marijuana Dispensaries Open in Virginia?
At this point, it's legal to possess adult-use marijuana in Virginia. However, it's not legal to buy it just yet.
Learn more about marijuana legalization in VA now.
The initial adult-use bill the VA House and Senate passed set out to legalize possession in 204. However, Governor Northam understood that Virginia marijauna accessibility needed to be improved upon faster. With disproportionate prohibition enforcement and penalties for minorities being a serious issue in the state, he pushed forth amendments to address the social equity issue.
Keep in mind, dispensaries will not obtain licenses to sell recreational marijuana products until the start of 2024. This leaves nearly two years until adults 21 years of age and older will be given Virginia marijauna accessibility.
Even with this being the case, marijuana accessibility for patients is no longer an issue. With several dispensaries distributing products throughout the state, accessibility is on the rise for medical marijuana cardholders in Virginia.
The Virginia medical marijuana program initially only gave license to five vertically-integrated medical marijuana facilities. After approving five operations across five service zones, one of them had its license revoked and has still not been replaced.
However, with later legislation, the original producers were given the opportunity to open another five dispensaries each. This allowed for a potential 30 dispensaries operating throughout Virginia.
Dispensary locations in Virginia will expand in the future. Thus, we can expect Virginia marijauana accessibility to increase over the next few years. The progress has been incredible, and as we watch on to see how these operations continue their expansions, it's safe to say that accessibility will continue to grow throughout the state.
Closing on Virginia Marijauna Accessibility
Will dispensaries become as abundant as liquor stores in Virginia? We think this is possible! But keep in mind, there's a cap on how many adult-use dispensaries can operate in the state.
Virginia will allow 400 adult-use dispensaries. Even with the number of dispensaries increasing, some of the more conservative regions in the state will likely ban these operations as local municipalities are allowed to forbid marijuana dispensaries after taking it to a vote.
However, Virginia law is pro-dispensary. Local governments need to enact their bans on marijuana sales through a voter referendum by 2022. Thus, voters in specific areas will have to decide if banning cannabis sales is the best thing for their community.
Despite the potential to forbid cannabis sales in certain areas, Virginia marijauna accessibility is growing with each passing day. Whether you're a patient or recreational consumer of cannabis, this is great news for the state's cannabis space!
Looking to obtain a medical marijuana card in Virginia? CannabisRxHealth is ready to help!
Contact us now to schedule your consultation with one of our registered physicians to get your recommendation for a medical marijuana card now.
