Just a week in office, Governor Phil Murphy has taken the first step in process of bringing much needed reform to New Jersey’s medical marijuana program. He signed an Executive Order today calling for his Commissioner of Health and the Board of Medical Examiners to report back in 60 days concerning expansion of the currently limited medical marijuana program consisting of five operating centers.
New Jersey’s existing medical marijuana program is problematic and ineffective for a number of reasons. The current program allows for a very limited number of qualifying patient conditions, has an overly burdensome regulatory process and associated administrative fees that discourage both doctor and patient participation, has an arbitrary and unnecessary limit on the amount of dispensaries permitted to operate in the state. It also places illogical limits on the types of medical cannabis strains permitted to be sold in each dispensary.
Stay tuned for more developments.