Why the Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association is at odds with medical marijuana patients

By Maureen Meehan

The Michigan Cannabis Manufacturers Association (MCMA) encourages its members to offer free or inexpensive cannabis products to patients with severe or incurable diseases.

“Like any other form of medicine, patients with cancer and other serious or incurable diseases deserve the assurance that their cannabis meets the highest standards for testing, tracking, licensing and safety – and that is exactly what our members’ products do,” said MCMA- Managing Director Stephen Linder in a recent press release.

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Several words in the resolution – “testing, tracking, licensing” – have sparked a mini-war between the MCMA and Michigan’s medical marijuana patients and their caregivers.

Despite the MCMA resolution and its request to encourage each of its members to develop their own program to provide low-cost or free medical marijuana products to those in need, storm clouds are gathering at the heart of Michigan’s hugely lucrative legal cannabis program.

Supervision conflict: The MCMA has come under fire for supporting laws that license and regulate medical marijuana caregivers by limiting the total number of plants a caregiver could grow to 12 after reducing the number of patients from five to one. As a result, some opponents are calling for a boycott of MCMA members as legislation seeks to monopolize the industry.

A six-cheap package launched in Lansing in September seeks tougher government oversight of medical cannabis nurses in what critics say is a covert attempt by commercial growers to increase their retail market share.

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Michigan’s MMJ supervisor so far: State law allows licensed caregivers to grow up to 12 plants or purchase up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis product for up to five patients – allowing for a harvest of up to 72 plants if the caregiver is also registered as a medical marijuana patient .

Unlike retailers, nurses don’t have to file lengthy business plans with government officials or pay as much license fees. Your products also don’t need to be tested in any of the state’s 17 licensed laboratories.

Photo by Mike Kline / Getty Images

Hence, proposals to restrict the freedom of medical marijuana caregivers to grow cannabis and to work essentially unhindered have met with fierce opposition from caregivers as well as some vertically integrated cannabis companies, according to City Pulse.

Critics say caregivers helped care for the state’s medical marijuana patients for nearly a decade before Michigan’s current regulatory structure was created in 2016, which was followed by the Recreational Cannabis Act of 2018.

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“Knowing all of the drafters of the 2018 legalization bill, I don’t know a single one of them who supports a change to the state nursing law,” said Josh Hovey, vice president of a public relations firm in Lansing who also served as spokesman for the 2018 election initiative .

“That’s a pretty good indication that the intent of legalization was to create a law where caregivers and the licensed industry can live side by side,” he added.

State records showed that outside of Michigan’s $ 1.47 billion licensed retail market, approximately 30,000 caregivers serve more than 250,000 patients. State officials have reported that approximately 72,000 patients are enrolled in a licensed nurse nationwide.

This article originally appeared on Benzinga and was republished with permission.