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Oklahoma's medical marijuana industry has grown rapidly. Currently, the state leads the nation in the number of cannabis dispensaries, and it ranks second for dispensaries per capita.
Journal Record editor Russell Ray discusses two reports that give insight into the prevalence of Oklahoma's cannabis business. The medical marijuana industry in Oklahoma really surpassed all expectations. In September, there were more than 1,700 licensed dispensaries here in Oklahoma. That’s well above California’s nearly 600 dispensaries. And all this is according to a report from Cannabiz Media. Now the founder of Cannabiz described Oklahoma’s numbers as “astonishing.”
The Oklahoma Tax Commission reported retail sales of medical marijuana exceeding more than $345 million. And according to some projections, Oklahoma’s medical marijuana market could grow to become a $700 million-a-year industry.
Oklahoma has the most licensed dispensaries of any state that has allowed this industry. Oklahoma now leads the nation in the number of cannabis dispensaries with more than 2,200.
Turns out Oklahoma has the most licensed dispensaries of any state that has allowed this industry. And of course, California legalized medical marijuana and eventually recreational marijuana before Oklahoma did.
If you’ve driven through the metro recently, you might have noticed the increase of dispensaries popping up everywhere.
So, to give perspective, those 1700 hundred dispensaries that existed in September:
1 dispo for every 2,300 people in Oklahoma
1 dispo for every 68,000 people in California
Why so different?
The difference between California and Oklahoma is the types of licenses.
California has more than 100 types of licenses versus a handful of license types in Oklahoma.
The cost to obtain a license in California can be as high as $240,000
The cost in Oklahoma is $2,500 for each license. (Also, there’s no cap in Oklahoma on how many licenses can be issued.)
Not only does Oklahoma have the most dispensaries of any state, but it ranks among the top for dispensaries per capita.
Why are Oklahoma dispensary numbers so high?
Oklahoma cities ranked high in the number of dispensaries per capita. Norman was No. 7 with 14.1 dispensaries per 50,000 residents. Altogether, nine cities in Oklahoma were in the top 30 per capita. And so by all accounts, this surpassed all expectations for the industry in the first year. When compared to other states with similar laws, Oklahoma’s medical marijuana practices are somewhat lax. Mentioned before that Oklahoma doesn’t limit the number of licenses it issues for cannabis dispensaries. The state also doesn’t specify which medical conditions can qualify citizens for a card to purchase cannabis. And this definitely isn’t the case in other states.
Laws vary from state to state.
In contrast, Minnesota passed legislation in 2014 that legalized marijuana for the treatment of nine specific medical conditions and capped the number of dispensaries allowed in the state at eight.
Interesting #'s to compare. Check this out.
Oklahoma Leads Nation In Number Of Cannabis Dispensaries Since 2018.
Oklahoma now leads the nation in the number of cannabis dispensaries with more than 2,200.
Oklahoma Application & Licensing Report
[as of] July 1st, 2020
BUSINESS
Applications Received: 11, 699
Active Licenses: 9,545
NUMBER OF ACTIVE LICENSES BUSINESS
Grower: 5,970
Processor: 1,407
Dispensary: 2,113
Transportation: 24
Waste Disposal: 10
Laboratory: 21
PATIENT
Applications Received: 333,450
Active Licenses: 313,638
CAREGIVER
Applications Received: 3,104
Active Licenses: 2,322
TOTAL
Applications Received: 348,253
Active Licenses: 325,505
Puff Puff Pass. What is proper etiquette and what does it mean?
PUFF PUFF PASS!
Here are a few facts about State Question 788:
During the June 2018 state election, 507,582 (56.86%) of voters voted “yes” for SQ 788, while 385,176 (43.14%) voted “no.”
When voters approved of SQ 788, Oklahoma became the 30th state in the U.S. to legalize medical marijuana.
Oklahomans for Cannabis, formerly known as Oklahomans for Health, organized the SQ 788 initiative.
The SQ 788 website features an annotated version of the document that explains the logic behind each section.
Contrary to many states’ medical cannabis laws, SQ 788 proposed a program without qualifying conditions. It instead leaves the decision up to the recommending physician. They simply have to use the same standards they would for pharmaceutical medicine.
What does the future hold?
It remains an open question how cannabis sales will fare if no – or limited – additional financial stimulus is provided to the tens of millions of unemployed U.S. residents.
Despite short-term uncertainty, the long-term potential of the cannabis industry remains intact.
Sharp sales increases in recently launched medical marijuana programs – as well as continued gains in adult-use markets – are expected to fuel much of the industry’s growth over the coming years.
New MMJ markets including Florida, Maryland, Oklahoma and Pennsylvania are booming, more than offsetting lost medical sales in markets that have legalized adult-use sales, such as Illinois, Massachusetts and Michigan.
Oklahoma is especially notable, as more than 8% of the state’s population has registered as MMJ patients – a figure that far exceeds even the most optimistic initial projections.
MMJ sales in Florida and Oklahoma are expected to surpass $1 billion each by 2021, placing them among the most valuable and rapidly growing cannabis markets in the United States – medical or otherwise.
So grab the popcorn and roll up a joint and let's see what tomorrow will bring. I for one, am excited to see!
Conclusion: For all of your cannabis, concentrate, edible, topical and cbd needs, there is a dispensary somewhere near you.