Arkansas voters legalized medical marijuana in 2016 and yet the process has been so badly botched that 2.5 years later, many people in the state don’t have a marijuana dispensary located within an hour’s drive. Another “only in Arkansas” fact is that one of the first dispensaries to open is in Stone County, a dry county that doesn’t allow alcohol sales. Fiddler’s Green opened in late July in Mountain View, population about 2,800. Meanwhile, Carroll County, population about 28,000, didn’t get a single dispensary.
Some residents, frustrated about still not having access to this alternative medicine they consider safer and more effective than pharmaceutical drugs, have questioned if the will of the voters has been subverted by the very slow rollout of the medical marijuana program in Arkansas.
Carroll County patients who have access to transportation may soon be able to drive to Bentonville for dispensaries expected to open there. Scott Hardin, spokesman for Alcohol Beverage Control in Arkansas, said while 32 dispensaries across the state are formally licensed, each location must pass a final inspection conducted by ABC agents prior to opening. The Releaf Center and Arkansas Medicinal Source Patient Center, both in Bentonville, are the only two in Northwest Arkansas that have contacted ABC to schedule a final inspection. Inspections were scheduled July 29.
“If the inspections are passed, we could see one or both dispensaries open next week,” Hardin said in an email on Friday, July 16. “We anticipate strong sales for Northwest Arkansas.”
Kattie Hansen, CEO of Native Green Wellness in Hensley, said many of their patients are elderly people who want to get off opioids to manage pain. On an hourly basis, they are seeing patients who came straight in after chemotherapy treatments, and patients with such severe anxiety it is almost unbearable.
Hansen said it is unfortunate that sick people must travel great distances to purchase medical marijuana products. For the disabled, the long drive is difficult. Many are low income and have trouble purchasing medicine in general. Hansen said having to add travel costs to the cost of the medical marijuana is a burden.
Hansen said applicants had to submit a timeline when they filed their application for a medical marijuana dispensary, and her company worked hard to meet that deadline. They opened July 3 in a new facility built from the ground up. They are also currently cultivating marijuana at the site.
Hansen said it is unfortunate that other zones and counties in the state are still waiting to get access to the products. She said something great for the MMC to do would be to audit timelines in applications and start holding companies responsible for not staying true to their time lines.
The Medical Marijuana Commission was supposed to meet monthly, but has been meeting only every two months. The commission has a dearth of information on its website. For example, a link to announcements is empty. In a link to medical marijuana dispensaries that are open, the website doesn’t show any. The link to medical marijuana doctors in the state also doesn’t show any medical marijuana doctors in links to major cities.
Hansen said they do have edible products for people who don’t want or can’t smoke. In addition to gummies, they sell concentrates, tinctures, and lotions.
“We are offering a large variety of things that are helpful for patients new to the industry who might be unfamiliar with smoking and need other methods of intake,” Hansen said. “I’m excited we are now able to offer those to our patients. And it really has been a blessing to go home at night knowing that I am helping people.”
Alcohol Beverage Control regulates the medical marijuana industry in Arkansas. Spokesman Scott Hardin said there are currently six dispensaries open for business. This includes two in Hot Springs, one each in Helena, Hensley, Mountain View and Clinton.
“The first dispensary (Doctor’s Orders in Hot Springs) opened May 10 and the second, Green Springs Medical, also in Hot Springs opened May 12,” Hardin said. “The other four recently followed. The timing of each dispensary opening is totally at the discretion of owners. MMC rules do not provide any specific date by which they must be open. However, ABC oversees the operation of dispensaries and cultivation facilities and there is an expectation that each dispensary should be at the least working toward opening. January 2020 will mark one year since the dispensaries were licensed. If there are dispensaries that are not operating by that time, ABC will take action. Penalties could include license revocation.”
Hardin said since the first dispensary opened May 10, a total of 504 pounds of medical marijuana has been sold through the six dispensaries.
The MMC issued 32 dispensary licenses.
“The commission does have the discretion to issue another eight if members determine additional dispensaries are needed to serve patients,” Hardin said.
In addition to five grow facilities in the state, including one in Carroll County, dispensaries have the option of growing/maintaining up to 50 on-site plants. The list below shows where Northwest Arkansas dispensaries are located, all of which have indicated they intend to grow plants.
ZONE 1
Valentine Holdings
3390 Martin Luther King Boulevard
Fayetteville, Ark.
Contact: Donald Parker
(870) 268-7601
Arkansas Medicinal Source Patient Center
406 Razorback Drive
Bentonville, Ark.
Contact: Erik Danielson
(479) 935-8313
The Releaf Center
9400 McNelly Road
Bentonville, Ark.
Contact: Roger Song
(479) 445-0304
Acanza Health Group
2733 North McConnell Avenue
Fayetteville, Ark.
Contact: Janinne Riggs
(800) 266-9057