Massachusetts

Prospective cannabis patients in Massachusetts can now use telehealth services to acquire a recommendation for the state medical cannabis program from their doctor.

Despite pressure from advocates and at least one cannabis regulator, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker said that the reopening of adult-use dispensaries in the state during the coronavirus crisis is a “non-starter.”

Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commissioner Shaleen Title has joined advocates in calling for the state to re-open adult-use cannabis dispensaries.

Cannabis companies around North America are stepping up to help however they can in the fight against the spreading coronavirus.

While many states have chosen to let dispensaries stay open during the coronavirus crisis, Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker (R) has announced the shutdown of adult-use sales.

Fears of the spreading coronavirus have continued to disrupt travel and event plans, with two more major cannabis events — Spannabis and NECANN Boston — announcing delays.

Boston’s first cannabis dispensary licensed for adult-use sales has opened for business.

The head of the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission said he plants to cut the wait time for cannabis licenses in half for next year, from an average of 121 days to just 60.

The city of Cambridge, Massachusetts is petitioning to block a previous court ruling that would force officials to license non-equity cannabis businesses.

Massachusetts cannabis regulators have been given access to sealed documents related to cannabis companies linked to Fall River Mayor Jasiel Correia’s bribery case from last year.

Massachusetts’ Curaleaf Holdings Inc. has completed its acquisition of Oregon’s Cura Partners for a bit less than $400 million; the deal includes 53 dispensaries, wholesale business, and the Select brand.

Lawmakers in Massachusetts have proposed the banning of cannabis advertisements from billboards; proponents of the ban say that billboards flout state laws that prohibit the advertising of cannabis to minors.

Green Leaf Health Inc. has reached a “host community agreement” with North Attleboro, Massachusetts. It will be the first cannabis company licensed for adult-use sales in the city.

Recent tax figures from Massachusetts’ Department of Revenue suggest that nearly $400 million worth of cannabis products have been distributed to consumers, generating some $61 million in taxes.

The Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission has established a quarantine on all cannabis vaporizers except those designed for patients “to exclusively vaporize marijuana flower.”

The Massachusetts municipalities of Eastham, Great Barrington, Leicester, Newton, Northampton, and Uxbridge have all been subpoenaed by U.S. Attorney Andrew Lelling over potential cannabis industry bribes.

The American International College in Springfield, Massachusetts will offer a certificate program in legal cannabis starting in spring 2020.

A group of Massachusetts medical cannabis patients is challenging the Department of Public Health’s right to regulate cannabis vaping products after officials issued a four-month ban in September; patients argue that the regulations should come from the Cannabis Control Commission.

Massachusetts’ New England Treatment Access has settled a federal lawsuit filed by lumber firm Boise Cascade Company, who claimed NETA’s logo was “confusingly similar” to their own.

In an effort to boost regional cannabis policy collaboration among New England states, Maine has adopted the same cannabis product warning labels as Massachusetts.

Four medical cannabis patients in Massachusetts have asked to join a lawsuit challenging the state’s four-month vaporizer ban approved last month by Gov. Charlie Baker.

The latest round of medical cannabis reforms in Massachusetts has done away with the $50 annual patient registration fee.

Massachusetts regulators voted 4-1 in favor of home delivery and social consumption rules; licenses for the two new business types will be made available first to social equity and economic empowerment applicants.

A governor-issued ban in Massachusetts will block the sale of cannabis and nicotine vaporizer products for four months; the ban comes after 61 people in the state have fallen ill with the vape-related pulmonary illness.