Pennsylvania – Page 2 – Cannabis Industry

March 22, 2018 by Seth A. Goldberg

Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Program to Begin Phase II Permitting

On April 5, 2018, Phase 2 of the PA Department of Health’s permitting for commercial medical marijuana cultivation and dispensary operations will begin.

13 Grower/Processor permits will be available, two in each of the six DOH regions, and the 13th going to the highest scorer. 23 Dispensary permits will be available, nine in Region 1, three in Regions 2 and 3, two in Regions 4 and 6, and four in Region 5. Applications will be available online at www.medicalmarijuana.pa.gov on April 5, and the submission deadline will be May 17.

In June 2017, 12 Grower/Processor and 27 Dispensary permits were granted. According to April Hutcheson of DOH:

25,573 patients have registered to participate in the PA program;
9,020 patient certifications have issued;
7,000 of those patients have purchased their ID cards;
6,683 patients have bought medical marijuana in a PA dispensary;
866 physicians have been registered to participate in the program; and
473 of the registered physicians have been approved.

Given the very real possibility that PA will approve the use of dry flower products, i.e., smoking and edibles, this summer, the PA market is positioned for strong performance over the next few years.

January 10, 2018 by Duane Morris

Pennsylvania Department of Health Publishes Regulations on Special Medical Marijuana Clinical Research Licenses

The Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Act uniquely provides for a special class of licenses for growers and dispensaries to partner with medical schools to undertake real clinical research on medical marijuana.

On January 3, 2018, the Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) published for comment the final clinical registrant regulations. The process of issuing these licenses will be underway shortly. While other states are focused on increasing the availability of nonmedical adult-use marijuana, Pennsylvania seeks to become the leader in clinical research on the medical benefits of cannabis.

To read the full text of this Alert, please visit the Duane Morris website.

November 28, 2017January 26, 2024 by Duane Morris

How Legal Marijuana in New Jersey Will Disrupt Pennsylvania’s Medical Program: A Q&A with Duane Morris Lawyers

New Jersey is almost certain to legalize marijuana for adult recreational use within a year, and that’s sure to have major repercussions on Pennsylvania’s nascent medical cannabis industry.

The Inquirer spoke with two Duane Morris LLP lawyers who represent marijuana clients on both sides of the river. Seth A. Goldberg, based in Philadelphia, heads the firm’s cannabis practice. Paul P. Josephson, based in Cherry Hill, served as counsel to Murphy’s gubernatorial campaign and is an adviser to the New Jersey Cannabis Industry Association.

October 23, 2017November 19, 2017 by Seth A. Goldberg

Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Market Officially Opens!

Exciting times in Pennsylvania!! After (i) medical marijuana was legalized in PA in April 2016, (ii) the PA government received more than 900 applications for permits to grow, process and/or dispense in March 2017, and (iii) 12 permits were awarded to grow/process and 27 permits were award to dispense in June 2017, the first grower/processor has been approved to operate, meaning marijuana will now be lawfully grown in PA.

October 5, 2017 by Seth A. Goldberg

Valuing a Medical Marijuana Grow

The medical marijuana market in Pennsylvania does not go live until, at the earliest, January 2018. However, the applicants for permits were required to develop business plans based on pro forma projections without having any “actual” information about marijuana sales in the market in which they intend to operate. Actual sales information from other states may be a useful proxy, but not necessarily a completely reliable one because of the differences in the regulations that define the marijuana markets in each state. A good example of the challenge in valuing a cannabis business is the recent proposal by Franklin Labs, which obtained one of 12 permits to grow cannabis in PA, to sell its permit for $20,000,000 months before the PA market goes live.

July 11, 2016June 14, 2017 by Duane Morris

The Marijuana Business Takes Root in Pa.

Duane Morris’ Seth Goldberg was quoted in the Philadelphia Business Journal on the opportunities and risk facing entrepreneurs in the development medical marijuana industry in Pennsylvania.

While the upfront costs to entrepreneurs wanting to enter the market are expected to run into the millions of dollars, the payoff could be substantial. The ArcView Group, a market research firm that studies the cannabis industry, estimates the Pennsylvania medical marijuana market will start out with annual sales at about $125 million and grow at a rate of about 180 percent per year in the program’s first few years.

“There will also be huge opportunities for entrepreneurs who want to create ancillary businesses that are integral to the core growing and dispensing businesses,” said Seth Goldberg, a Philadelphia attorney with Duane Morris who specializes in commercial and health care matters.

Continue reading “The Marijuana Business Takes Root in Pa.”

January 28, 2015June 14, 2017 by Seth A. Goldberg

Pennsylvania Could Enact Medical Marijuana Legislation In 2015

On January 26, 2015, in a bipartisan effort, Pennsylvania senators Mike Folmer (R) and Daylin Leach (D) reintroduced to the General Assembly of Pennsylvania a bill (Senate Bill No. 3) providing for the medical use of cannabis in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Senate Bill No. 3 comprises a comprehensive set of regulations that include (1) licensing and administrative procedures for growers, processors, dispensers, patients and health care professionals; (2) enforcement and penalties; and (3) fees and surcharges.

Recent comments by Pennsylvania’s newly inaugurated Governor, Tom Wolf, and last year’s passage by the PA Senate of a similar bill (Senate Bill No. 1182) by a 43-7 vote, suggest that Pennsylvania may be one of the states (the recent trend suggests there will be others) that enacts Medical Marijuana legislation in 2015. As Governor Wolf stated on the same day that Senate Bill No. 3 was introduced, “I commend the bipartisan effort to allow Pennsylvania doctors to prescribe medical marijuana… We should not deny a physician’s ability to recommend medical marijuana treatment for Pennsylvanians suffering from seizures, those affected by PTSD, cancer patients affected by chemotherapy, and Pennsylvanians suffering from many other ailments and conditions that could benefit from this effective, doctor-prescribed treatment.”

Continue reading “Pennsylvania Could Enact Medical Marijuana Legislation In 2015”