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On January 27, 2022, the Ohio Lottery Commission will hold a drawing to determine the winning applications for 73 additional medical marijuana dispensaries in Ohio. Last year (2021), the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program, along with the State Pharmacy Board of Ohio, determined that the current number of dispensaries could not sufficiently meet patient demand for medical marijuana product. To address limited location availability, and to address price concerns, the regulators collectively agreed that additional licensed dispensaries would improve overall patient satisfaction and access to the medical marijuana.

During the initial application process in 2017, the Pharmacy Board reviewed all qualifying applications and graded each using a point system. The applications with the highest point totals received the licenses. The prior system resulted in numerous legal challenges, some of which remain pending.

This time, instead of grading, the Pharmacy Board merely reviewed the applications to verify compliance with minimum statutory qualifications. Each application then received a unique identification number. The Lottery Commission will now select 73 numbers at random to determine the winners. During the two-week application period, the Pharmacy Board received 1,463 applications for the 73 new licenses and 1,402 applications met the minimum qualification. The new licenses will more than double the 57 licenses that were awarded during the original licensing period.

As this new system is implemented, we expect numerous new legal challenges will be raised.  If you have any questions about medical marijuana processor licenses or the Medical Marijuana Control Program, you should contact an attorney.  Levi Tkach of Graff & McGovern is an expert in administrative law.  He can be reached at 614-228-5800, extension 4, or levi@grafflaw.com.