News » Montana Medical Marijuana Cardholders Decline by 15%





Montana implemented new legislation in July which provides much stricter regulation for medical marijuana patients and providers. The main goal of the new low is to make it much harder to obtain medical marijuana.

By that measure, the law is a success. In total, the number of approved cardholders in the state is down 15% through the end of August. Many cards were revoked under the new law, such as those issued to parolees. According to Roy Kemp, a deputy administrator at the Department of Public Health and Human Services, the number of registered cardholders is now fewer than 27,000.

He expects that number to drop further as cards issued under the old law expire with current patients unable to renew.

Providers have also been affected dramatically. There were over 4,000 licensed dispensaries and caregivers under the voter approved law which passed in 2004. Those licenses were also revoked and since the law went into effect in July only 285 have successfully reregistered. New rules will soon go into place adding even more obstacles – such as a mandatory fingerprint background check for all providers.

Kate Cholewa of the Montana Cannabis Industry Association doesn’t think the law is truly succeeding as lawmakers believe it is. Rather than decrease the number of marijuana users, he says, the patients who can no longer obtain a card are simply buying their marijuana illegally, forcing the industry back underground. His association opposed the new legislation and continues to work at repealing it.

Another group, Patients for Reform-Not Repeal, are gathering signatures in opposition of the new legislation as well. They argue that the law should be reformed by popular vote rather than by legislative order.

[source Businessweek]

Tags: Kate Cholewa, marijuana, Montana, Montana Cannabis Industry Association, Patients for Reform-Not Repeal, Roy Kemp