Alabama’s medical cannabis industry seems to be entering a new chapter. On Thursday, the Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC) voted to accept 90 applications, properly submitted by companies looking to be part of the state’s emerging medical cannabis industry, according to an AL.com report.
Submitted applications from cultivators, processors, dispensaries, secure transporters, testing labs and integrated licensees will go through a review, evaluation and scoring process. AMCC said that it has also contacted the University of South Alabama to form teams of academic evaluators and other qualified individuals to lead the review process.
Applications for licenses closed on Dec. 30, 2022. The commission made applicant names and application contents available for public inspection April 14, and it will accept public comments until May 14 through the AMCC website. The AMCC is scheduled to award licenses at a June 12 meeting later this year.
AMCC Director John McMillan shared the commission’s excitement to be “one step closer” to implementing its legal medical cannabis program in a Thursday news release, adding that, “Now that we have our official slate of applicants, the 60-day window to review applications has started.”
Alabama’s medical cannabis law placed limits on the allotted licenses the AMCC can issue in specific categories, namely 12 cultivator licenses, four processor licenses, four dispensary licenses, five integrated facility licenses and an unspecified number of secure transport and state testing laboratory licenses.
It’s the latest move in setting up the medical cannabis industry first approved by the Alabama Legislature in 2021, making it now one of 38 states that have authorized the use of cannabis products for medical use. Legalized through Alabama Act 2021-450, also known as the Darren Wesley “Ato” Hall Compassion Act, the act specifies that it aims to “provide civil and criminal protections to certain patients with a qualifying medical condition who have a valid medical cannabis card for the medical use of cannabis.”
The act also establishes the AMCC to oversee the bill’s integration and administration.
The program allows doctors who have received training in medical cannabis to recommend products for more than a dozen qualified conditions: autism spectrum disorder; cancer-related pain, weight loss and vomiting; Crohn’s Disease; depression; epilepsy or conditions causing seizures; HIV/AIDS-related nausea or weight loss; panic disorder; Parkinson’s Disease; persistent nausea; post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD); sickle cell anemia; spasticity associated with multiple sclerosis or spinal cord injury; Tourette’s Syndrome; a terminal illness and conditions causing chronic or intractable pain.
The legislation allows products including pills, capsules, tinctures, gelatinous cubes, oils, creams, patches, suppositories, nebulizers and liquids or oils for an inhaler. Currently, no raw plant materials, smokable or edible products are allowed.
“We look forward to an operational program that will not only benefit patients by providing relief to pain and other debilitating symptoms, but also will provide opportunities for patients with these debilitating conditions to function and have a better quality of life,” AMCC Chairman Dr. Steven Stokes said.
After business licenses are issued, physicians may begin the certification process to recommend medical cannabis to qualified patients. Last year, the AMCC established a timeline for the medical cannabis industry, initially saying it was on pace to start accepting dispensary licenses in September 2022 and that “patients could get a cannabis card by spring 2023.”
Since then, the commission has amended the estimate, noting that the start date for medical cannabis sales remains “uncertain,” though the Montgomery Advertiser later reported that actual license won’t be awarded until June, with medical cannabis expected to be available to qualified Alabamians by late 2023 at the earliest. It appears that the timeline is still on track.
