New report shows 33 percent of patients cultivated at home in 2019
A new report from the Department of Health and Senior Services Section for Medical Marijuana Regulation shows a strong presence of patient-cultivators in the program’s first 6 months.
Article XIV contained several deadlines for this first program year including: begin accepting pre-file facility license applications by January 5, 2019, make all application forms and instructions publicly available by June 4, 2019, begin accepting patient, caregiver, and patient cultivation applications by July 4, 2019, and begin accepting facility applications by August 3, 2019. DHSS successfully met each of these deadlines.
“I am extremely proud of our team and the program that we have developed. It has been an honor to lead this hardworking group of dedicated team members as we bring this new industry to Missouri in a well-regulated, safe, and patient-focused program,” stated Lyndall Fraker, Director of the Section for Medical Marijuana Regulation.
DHSS is charged with providing safe and secure access to medical marijuana for qualifying Missouri patients. During the first program year, DHSS approved 23,269 patient and caregiver applications and began the process of licensing the constitutional minimum number of regulated medical marijuana facilities.
The Section began accepting and approving patient care cards in June 2019. In 2014, though only 2.54 percent of approved cards were approved caregivers, 33 percent of patients registered as home cultivators.
Additionally, the report breaks down qualified patients by condition, with the two most prominent categories including psychiatric conditions (32.5 percent) and chronic medical conditions (27 percent).
In 2019, only 3 percent (684) of patient applications were denied. Over 23,000 patients were approved in the first 6 months of patient approvals. Broken down by age, the largest patient demographic group is those aged 30-39 at 21.77 percent, followed by those 50-59 at 19.22 percent.
Patient care has been a large priority for the program.
“From June 28, 2019, through December 5, 2019, the SMMR received 25,021 patient and patient caregiver applications,” reads the report. “As of December 5, 2019, 100 percent of applications received have been processed within the 30-day required timeframe. Patient Services has successfully maintained approving or denying 100 percent of all complete applications received as constitutionally prescribed while simultaneously responding to a high volume of calls and email inquiries. From June 2019 through November 2019, patient services received and responded to an average of more than 2,000 emails monthly.”
The report also breaks down the application process, related data, and the early enforcement set up for violations and penalties – for patient and facility compliance.
The application period for facilities was in August 2019, no facilities were able to operate in 2019. To date, a handful of facilities have completed their commencement inspection and await word of operational approval.
The report goes into the facility application process and breakdown. Greenway will break this report into more stories.
The Medical Marijuana Regulatory Program released its 2019 Annual Report to the Governor for Program Year 2019 online on Friday, June 5, 2020. Read the full report below.
