With only one dispensary in operation, it’s easy to track how much medical marijuana a patient buys in Delaware.

State officials say tracking those purchases will be more difficult when dispensaries are opened in each county. That’s why program administrators are exploring the possibility of limiting patients to purchasing medicine only from the dispensary in the county where they reside.

In December, the state issued a request for proposals to expand the number of dispensaries from one – the First State Compassion Center in Wilmington – to one in each county, which the state's medical marijuana law calls for.

Andrea Wojcik, Division of Public Health spokeswoman, said the state has seen a sharp increase in the number of cardholders since First State opened, and opening dispensaries in Kent and Sussex counties would improve access for patients. She said, as of Feb. 1, there are 876 patients throughout the state – 583 in New Castle County, 135 in Kent County and 158 in Sussex County.

A mandatory pre-bid meeting for anyone planning to submit a proposal was held Feb. 1. The meeting was well attended – nearly 70 people filled the Delaware Health and Social Services large training room in the Edgehill Shopping Center in Dover.

During that meeting, Dawn Brubaker, a medical marijuana program administrator, said health officials have yet to finalize how purchases will be monitored, but one possibility is restricting patients to the dispensary in the county where they live.

Delaware’s medical marijuana law allows patients to purchase up to three ounces of marijuana in a 14-day period. That same law rests the responsibility of tracking patient purchases squarely on the shoulders of the dispensaries.

In anticipation of working with other dispensary owners, Joel Allcock, vice president of cultivation for First State Compassion Center, asked how dispensaries would track marijuana purchases. The center opened its doors a little more than eight months ago.

In a Feb. 2 email, Wojcik said the state is still weighing its options.

“That concept was raised as a potential idea in response to a specific question, but no decision has been made,” she said.

Brubaker said it’s possible patients may be allowed to petition the state for a change in the dispensary they’re allowed to use.

Chris Costas, a medical marijuana cardholder from Lewes, was unaware the state was considering more dispensaries, but he was noticeably happy to hear about it. When asked about being limited to purchasing his medication only from a future Sussex County dispensary, he said it didn’t bother him.

“At this point, it’s not going to be a problem,” Costas said frankly. “It’s going to be just as expensive down here as it is in Wilmington.”

Allcock’s questions spurred other potential bidders to ask how a business plan was supposed to be created if they don’t know how many patients they’ll be dispensing for.

Thom May, DPH chief of Health Systems Protection, said it’s up to the bidder to provide a plan addressing those issues.

Wojcik echoed those statements.

“It is up to the bidders to develop an appropriate business plan, part of which would involve market research,” she said.

Proposals, and a $5,000 application fee, are due no later than 11 a.m., Wednesday, March 30.

The RFP’s timeline calls for the selection of a vendor – or vendors, because each county is a separate proposal – by May 27.