Medical cannabis in Georgia became much more accessible over the summer, and soon, it may be even more so.
The Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission
has scheduled a public hearing at 4 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16 at its office in Atlanta at 254 Washington St. During which it will consider adopting and amend multiple rules, one being a framework for allowing medical marijuana products to be delivered.Rule 351-6-.11 seeks to "establish regulations and requirements for dispensing products via delivery to patients, caregivers, and healthcare institutions." Dispensaries would have to verify a patient or caregiver's identity with a stored copy of their photo ID and verify an active and valid registry card with a stored copy of the card.
Products
would have to be delivered to the Georgia address listed on the patient or caregiver's ID. Deliveries would only be performed by the Postal Service, a private carrier like FedEx and UPS, or the commission.
The meeting to discuss this will be open to the public in-person as well as via conference call and virtual livestream. Written comments must be submitted no later than 5 p.m. Sept. 9 via email rules@gmcc.ga.gov or mail comments to Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission, 'ATTN: Proposed Rules,' 254 Washing St. Fourth Floor St. 420, Atlanta GA 30334.
The proposed rules will be considered for adoption by the commission at its meeting 4 p.m. Sept. 30.
Is weed legal in Georgia?
Recreational marijuana is not legal. However, in July, the "Putting Georgia's Patients First Act" (a.k.a. Senate Bill 220) went into effect. This removed the previous 5% THC potency cap on medical cannabis products, allowing patients to keep 12,000 milligrams if it's labeled in a pharmaceutical container.
It also expanded the list of conditions eligible including lupus, autism, Stage III HIV, severe Alzheimer's disease, and inflammatory bowel disease. The list includes more than a dozen ailments, which can be found at dph.georgia.gov/health-topics/medical-cannabis. Those with "incurable" or "irreversible" conditions don't have to go through annual certification.
Nearest dispensary near me
There are 16 licensed dispensaries, according to the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission. The map of their dispensaries can be found below:
How to get a medical marijuana card in Georgia
Those interested in getting registered for medical cannabis must have a qualifying condition which is certified and managed by a fully-licensed physician whose principal practice is in Georgia. Your physician will upload that info to a registry and Georgia Department of Public Health will verify it. If there are questions, the agency will reach out.
If everything is correct, you will receive an email with instructions on how to pay for your cannabis card. You can pay online or by money order to "Georgia Department of Public Health; Attn: Medical Cannabis Program; 200 Piedmont Ave SE, West Tower Suite 1710, Atlanta GA 30334." The card is $30 plus a $3.75 service fee if you use the payment portal. Payments must be submitted within 60 days, otherwise your card will be canceled and you'll have to reach back out to your physician.
You can check the status of your card at sendss.state.ga.us. Once that's all done, your card will be shipped via UPS to your mailing address on file. Expect up to 10 business days from whenever your payment is processed.
Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for USA Today. Find him on Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Medical marijuana could soon be legally delivered to your Georgia home
