What is a Medical Marijuana Card?
A medical marijuana card is a state-issued identification that allows patients to purchase cannabis products in a dispensary to treat medical conditions and ailments. Non-patients often can't enter a dispensary without a medical card.
In some states, the card provides proof that patients can grow limited amounts of marijuana plants at home or utilize medical cannabis delivery services. State laws also may allow patients to appoint a caregiver to purchase, administer, or grow their medical marijuana as well.
Most medical cannabis programs are regulated and operated under each state's department of health. Aside from the patient side of the program, these state departments also handle regulations for the cultivation and sale of medical marijuana, as well as caregiver applications.
Medical marijuana regulations vary widely from state to state. For example, patients in Colorado and California have access to a wide array of medical cannabis products, but states less weed-friendly, such as Texas, have strict programs in place. Some states allow only pharmaceutical derivatives of cannabis or require patients to exhaust all other conventional treatments before a doctor can recommend medical marijuana.