Cannabis patients in West Virginia have waited four years and seen months for medical cannabis sales to begin. Friday November 12 saw West Virginia’s first medical cannabis dispensary open, with a second following on Monday November 15.

“We’re thrilled to be first to market in West Virginia and to continue building the foundation for the West Virginia’s emerging medical cannabis market,” explained the company opening both dispensaries, Truelieve. “Our team is especially eager to leverage our first-mover advantage to bolster local economies by creating sustainable jobs and investing in marginalized communities. We look forward to serving West Virginia patients, who have been patiently waiting for this day to arrive, with an unparalleled retail experience and the high-quality medical cannabis products they can rely on for safe and effective relief.”

Sales are expected to reach anywhere between $400,000 to $500,000 this year because stores opened so late. Additionally, there have only been 4,000 patients registered for the medical cannabis program.

2022’s sales are expected to reach $6 million as more and more West Virginia residents apply and become approved for medical cannabis prescriptions. By 2025, experts expect annual medical cannabis sales to reach $40 million. 

Response

However, not everyone is excited about the sales. “West Virginia holds the unfortunate record for the slowest state to implement medical cannabis access,” said Karen O’Keefe. She is Marijuana Policy Project’s West Virginia policies director. “Many patients have surely died waiting.”

In addition to a slow start to the West Virginia medical cannabis program, there is concern over availability. Several companies who own dispensaries in the state also have licenses for cultivation and processing. This leaves very little product available to small businesses who only received or could only afford a dispensary license. Dispensary owner Chris Visco spoke with local news about the limited product. 

“[The state] over-licensed the state,” she said. Visco then expressed her frustration with the long wait, the money, and the energy she has invested into her West Virginia dispensary with almost no support from the state to help make the medical cannabis program, as well as small businesses, work and remain successful. Visco remains hopeful but also expressed concerns for patients waiting to purchase their medical cannabis prescription.

“They’ve waited four years and now there is product but it won’t be available to them,” she said.

Banking

The biggest struggle the West Virginia medical cannabis program has faced is banking. There aren’t state or federal provisions in place to protect banks who work with cannabis companies, from dispensaries to cultivators and growers. The U.S. House has passed the SAFE Banking Act four times now over the past several years, but the Senate has always let it fall by the wayside. Now, lawmakers are speaking out against the delay. 

The SAFE Banking Act “will allow cannabis businesses to access normal banking services, which will transition fully cash-based cannabis transactions into the financial system where they belong.”

But no protection is available for companies yet. Therefore, all dispensaries must operate on cash-only systems with no way to protect their cash flow in a safe place. THis has led to an increase in violence and crime surrounding medical cannabis dispensary deposits. Banking will help reduce this violence. But it still hasn’t happened yet. 

Next Steps

Medical cannabis is available in West Virginia, but in limited areas. More dispensaries are expected to open in the next few months as more and more patient applications are approved. The sales could help boost the West Virginia state revenue, which would improve with the help of safe banking with protections. 

As more information becomes available, we will update you with the latest.

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