March 24, 2020 Governor Herbert signed HB 425, which officially allows Utah patients to purchase medical marijuana without needing a card. But there are a few stipulations, and things to remember if this is the route that you plan on taking to legally purchase medical cannabis in the state of Utah.

What HB 425 Does

The purpose of HB 425 is to allow patients with doctor recommendation letters to buy medical cannabis in Utah. Previous to this bill passing, there were just over 1,000 patients who successfully got their medical cards, and many more who had recommendations from their doctor, but could only buy marijuana out of state. For most of these patients, they aren’t able to get cards because the state hasn’t registered their doctor as an approved QMP. Over time more doctors will be registered, and the state system will be easier for patients and doctors to navigate. But until then we have HB 425 to allow anyone with a recommendation to purchase and possess medical marijuana.

How Do I Buy Marijuana Using My Doctor’s Recommendation?

Because the bill was just barely signed into law, we still aren’t 100% sure how it will work in reality and what issues will arise, but here is what we do know:

You will need to register with one dispensary that you choose.

The new law only allows for patients to register with and buy from one dispensary (MMJ pharmacy) that they choose. This means that you can’t register for both Dragonfly Wellness in SLC and Deseret Wellness in Provo, and buy from both of them.

Since there is only one dispensary currently open and operating, that makes the choice easy for most of us who live close to Salt Lake City. We still aren’t sure if you will have a chance to cancel your registration at one dispensary and select a new one when more open up, so the choice becomes less clear for patients that live farther away from the capitol.

Dragonfly Wellness is Accepting Your Doctor Recommendations Now.

I spoke with employees at Dragonfly Wellness and they are on top of the situation. Due to the current pandemic, they are requiring all new patients to visit their website and register as a patient before coming in. They will have you upload a scan of your letter and a copy of your ID, then they will contact your doctor and confirm that you are an eligible patient. Once you receive the confirmation email from them, you’re good to go!

If you haven’t yet, check out my review of Dragonfly Wellness.

Should I Still Try to Get My Official Card?

Yes, you should. If your doctor is still not a QMP, continue pushing them to register. HB 425 only protects you until the end of 2020 if you have a doctor’s letter of recommendation but no Utah medical marijuana card. Once January of next year comes around, you don’t want to go from being a legal patient to illegal again, whether you buy your medicine in or out of the state.

HB 425 is meant to be a temporary fix for a temporary problem. The permanent solution if you are going to be a long-term MMJ patient is to find a QMP and get an official card. If you currently have a doctor’s letter, go ahead and register with a dispensary, then use the rest of the year to get your card so that you have the freedom to use different dispensaries as they get up and running in the next 9 months.

If you don’t know where to start and want another resource for you or your medical provider, I suggest visiting https://utahmarijuana.org/ . Tim Pickett has taken the lead as an educator and medical professional on the subject of medical marijuana in our state.