Demand for Medical Marijuana Florida

Can Florida Keep Up With The Demand For Medical Marijuana?

How Many People Have Applied for Medical Marijuana Cards in Florida?

Florida is experiencing a medical marijuana boom and they are feeling the pressure as the daily demand for new patients grows at an astronomical rate. Since June the number of medical cannabis patients has jumped from around 16000 to over 31000. This has put some pressure on the Office of Medical Marijuana Use employees and the doctors who are required to take the training course mandated by the state before they are able to start writing recommendations.

How Long Does it Take to Get a Medical Marijuana Card?

Part of the frustration is the waiting period that patients have to endure between the doctor’s visit where they receive the written recommendation and getting the actual card that states the individual may legally acquire marijuana. As of now the in-between time is around 30 days, which is a huge improvement from the 90 day waiting period that was initially expected.

What are the Changes in Medical Marijuana Doctors’ Training?

The good news is that officials are aware of the hiccups and are working to do something about it. Representatives from the health department of Florida recognize that in order to accommodate the rapidly growing industry, they need to outsource and hire dozens of new employees to handle the demand. Additionally, the training hours for doctors who want to issue those recommendations has been lowered from eight hours to two. Currently, there are over 1000 doctors throughout the state who are trained to issue referrals, so lowering the training hours should significantly speed up that end of the process and help bring more patient relief.

Is the Process to Get a Medical Marijuana Card in Florida Getting Any Better?

While some patients are in this limbo period, there is a light at the end of the tunnel it seems. The state recognizes they weren’t fully prepared for how quickly the program would grow and are taking the necessary steps to remedy this, which unfortunately may take some time but at least it’s in the works.

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