State board votes to increase Ohio medical marijuana dispensaries to 130 from current 57
2 min read
COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Board of Pharmacy unanimously voted Monday afternoon to more than double the number of medical marijuana dispensaries in the state to a total of 130 of the current 57 provisional and active licensed companies.
The reasons for the increase are twofold: to improve access for patients who travel long distances to buy products and to create more competition to drive prices down, said Sharon Maerten-Moore, director of medical marijuana- Operations of the Board of Directors.
The Board of Pharmacy staff spent months studying whether the number of pharmacies in Ohio was sufficient. Patient and care surveys were sent to find out how far patients were going and whether they thought the prices were reasonable. This survey found 58.4% are dissatisfied with the prices and approx. 20% drove more than 30 miles to a pharmacy.
They also looked at pharmacy zip code data to get an idea of how far people were traveling. Not only have rural Ohioans driven far for marijuana, some patients who live in urban areas also drive a lot because of long lines in shops near home.
“Some of them prefer to go to a father’s pharmacy because they need less time to drive out of their area,” said Maerten-Moore.
Board of Pharmacy officials looked at the number of pharmacies per capita in neighboring Michigan and Pennsylvania and found that the number of pharmacies in Ohio lagged significantly.
Ohio ranks well below neighboring states for the number of pharmacies per capita. (Ohio Board of Pharmacy)
By adding 73 new pharmacies, Ohio will be higher than Pennsylvania and lower than Michigan in business per capita, Maerten-Moore said.
When the program began in Ohio, officials assumed there would be 12,000 to 24,000 patients in the first two years, based on the experience of other states.
In January, that’s the two-year mark since The first pharmacies were openedThere were 136,000 patients.
“We have added an average of 7,500 patients per month over the past six months,” said Maerten-Moore.
The rules approved on Monday are expected to be finalized in late May or early June.
The board also approved a change in the approval of pharmacies. When regulators first set up the program, they examined each pharmacy application and gave it a numerical rating, with the highest-scoring companies generally receiving licenses.
Many applicants missed the opportunity to open a pharmacy. This led to a number of complain.
Under the new rules, all applications that meet the minimum standards of business, safety and law will be entered into a lottery from which the winners will be selected.
“We believe this will lead to a fairer and more rational process,” said Cameron McNamee, director of politics and communications for the board.
More coverage:
Patients, caregivers say medical marijuana prices are too high in Ohio and coronavirus aggravates it
Medical marijuana officials in Ohio are deciding whether the state needs more pharmacies
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