medical marijuana

Sanctuary Cannabis' failed challenge centered on a new state Department of Health formula that dramatically increased costs for marijuana companies.

Green Thumb Industries, which wants to sell cannabis next to convenience stores in Florida, has filed an appeal after an administrative law judge ruled against it, siding with state health regulators.

State regulators didn’t do anything wrong when they rejected Green Thumb Industries' requests to open dispensaries near or adjacent to convenience stores, an administrative law judge ruled.

The health department sent "letters of intent" to the group, but the move sets up what could be lengthy litigation from applicants that missed out on a rare chance to join the state's medical pot industry.

The ballot measure's defeat could strengthen the industry as it struggles to compete with hemp-based products sold at gas stations, CBD shops and online at a fraction of the cost.

With recreational pot legal, patients will eventually need to decide if they want to keep their card, which costs $75 a year and requires doctor's visits every seven months costing between $350 and $600 a year.

The law would help at least three Black farmers who sought licenses to grow the plants but were deemed ineligible to apply by state officials.

The agency says it didn't single out the 700,000 patients but sent the budget review to everyone in its email databases, including members of the public. Those on the marijuana registry claim it's a privacy violation.

The bill would bring to six the number of potentially lucrative licenses earmarked for Black farmers with ties to decades-old litigation about discriminatory lending practices by federal officials.

Executive director Shamarial Roberson, an epidemiologist, says the association will advocate for “research and advancement” for medical marijuana.