LANSING – The Dept. of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs (LARA) issued a recommendation today to the Medical Marihuana Licensing Board (MMLB) for its March 21 meeting that would maintain patient access to medical marijuana by allowing licensed facilities to continue sourcing product from caregivers as long as the products are tested.
Should the MMLB adopt the resolution, licensed growers and processors starting April 1 will be able to purchase caregiver products as long as those products are entered into the statewide monitoring system and tested before transporting them to licensed provisioning centers. Provisioning centers that have purchased caregiver products prior to April 1 may continue to sell them as long as customers sign an affidavit acknowledging that their product was not tested.
“Gov. Whitmer is right to put patients first as the state works to develop a fully licensed and regulated medical marijuana industry. Allowing tested caregiver products to enter the system will help alleviate the supply shortage issues that have been experienced in the past while ensuring that products are safe for consumers,” Michigan Cannabis Industry Association spokesperson Josh Hovey said in reaction to LARA’s recommendation.
LARA’s recommendation also requires businesses operating temporarily while going through the licensing process to close on April 1 if their license is not approved by the MMLB.
“While it was not realistic to expect the state to indefinitely issue extensions for the temporary operating facilities, there will be dozens of businesses unfairly forced to close,” said Hovey.
“It is not their fault the licensing board has been so slow to vet and approve licenses or that the board only meets once a month. It is critical that the licensing board review and approve as many applicants as possible at its upcoming meeting. Even then, there will be applications that won’t be heard in time and businesses left disenfranchised. We urge the state to come up with solutions that fast-track the licensing process before the March 31 deadline,” said Hovey.
Michigan currently has a total of 108 licensed businesses, 54 of which are provisioning centers. View a map of licensed businesses across Michigan by clicking here.

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