LANSING, MI - Less than two months after the Bureau of Medical Marihuana Regulation declared medical marijuana shops open after Dec. 15 could face an impediment to licensure, it reversed its stance.

"Through emergency rules, the Bureau and Board will not consider a medical marihuana facility's prior operation as an impediment to licensure as long as the applicant documents approval from their municipality in their application," said BMMR Director Andrew Brisbo in a press release.

Currently, dispensaries are operating in a legal gray area. The legislature under a 2016 law created the BMMR and Medical Marihuana Licensing Board to license marijuana facilities like dispensaries and grow operations, bringing them into the light. But it's the BMMR putting the meat on the bones of that legislative framework by establishing emergency rules before the board begins taking applications on Dec. 15.

The idea of penalizing currently-operating dispensaries in the licensure process first came up in August, when Medical Marihuana Licensing Board member Don Bailey moved to have all dispensaries shut down if they wanted to be considered for licensure.

He initially proposed a Sept. 15 date by which all dispensaries seeking licenses would need to shut down to be considered for licensure later on. Brisbo walked that back at a September meeting, saying shops had until Dec. 15 - when the application period opened - to cease operations or face a potential impediment to licensure.

But today the BMMR reversed course. In a press release Wednesday, it announced its intent to allow dispensaries operating with local approval to keep operating without impacting the applicant's eligibility for licensure.

Brisbo said on a conference call the decision was based mainly on feedback from patients and others who would be affected if dispensaries were closed for a period of time.

The state currently has 272,215 patients, according to a spokesperson for the Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.

Some patients testified before the Medical Marihuana Licensing Board in opposition to any action that would close dispensaries.

Sue Molff, a patient from Traverse City, said at an August meeting she didn't appreciate the board talking about shutting down dispensaries. She said she depended on the concentrates she was only able to get at medical marijuana shops.

"What am I supposed to do during that time? Am I supposed to go back on the black market and get what I need?" She asked.

Under the new rules, dispensaries operating under local ordinances - such as those in place in Lansing and Detroit - could keep doing so while they were applying for licenses to operate under the new, statewide regulations. They would need to submit a prequalification application by Feb. 15, 2018, and cease operations if their license was denied.