Oklahoma’s regulators have already dished out more than 7,300 cannabis medical cannabis licenses to business owners living in the Republican-leaning state. 

This is according to figures released by the state, which revealed that licenses have been bestowed upon various kinds of business owners, including processors and dispensary owners. 

A brand new type of license can also be applied for under the state’s medical cannabis program – a transporter license. Furthermore, over 4,300 cultivation permits have been approved and issued among cultivators.

Don’t be fooled into thinking that the application process is simple, however. For new medical cannabis companies hoping to join Oklahoma’s market, 3/4 of the owners must be residents of the state. Proof of this will be requested, so there is no cutting corners. 

More rules for Oklahoma’s medical cannabis industry are expected to be released in the coming weeks; relating to seed-to-sale tracking, regulatory compliance, lab testing, product labelling, packaging and waste management.

Oklahoma’s medical cannabis: State experiences success with first year of legal sales

The initial year of Oklahoma’s medical cannabis program has been successful, to say the least. An impressive 178,173 patient enrollment applications were approved.

In an attempt to meet demand for the flourishing industry, business owners have been encouraged to apply for licences. According to the Medical Marijuana Authority, a total of 4,287 cultivation licenses have been issued among growers, as well as 1,173 processor licenses. 

The products yielded by these license holders is manufactured for sale inside state-licensed dispensaries, for which there were 1,848 licenses issued during the first year.

It is important that an adequate number of licenses are issued among processors cultivators and dispensary operators. After all, U.S. Census data revealed that the population of Oklahoma was close to four million last year. 

A significant portion of state residents are medical cannabis consumers, with close to 140,000 having enrolled in Oklahoma’s medical cannabis program as of June 17. This puts the registration rate at approximately 35 per 1,000 residents.

Program for medical cannabis in Oklahoma is outpacing initial estimates

Oklahoma’s medical cannabis market is among the top in the U.S. A voter-approved measure passed in June 2018 and since that time, the industry has steadily grown. 

If predictions made by the Marijuana Business Factbook analysts are correct, Medical cannabis sales in Oklahoma will top $140 million to $180 million during the first year of the medical cannabis program going into effect.

By the middle of June this year, the Medical Marijuana Authority had already approved 3,211 cultivation licenses. Add to this the 1,540 dispensary licenses and 859 processor licenses issued, and it goes without question that patients will have plenty of options when it comes to buying pharmaceutical grade pot in Oklahoma. 

Patients can apply for medical cannabis in Oklahoma online

The ease of applying online for a medical cannabis card in Oklahoma is a major appeal for the many residents that have signed up to the program. Applications are dealt with via the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) website. 

Operating under the Oklahoma State Department of Health, the purpose of the OMMA is to monitor the program, as well as to deal with everything related to licensing, regulating and administering the program in accordance with state law.

Patients, caregivers, dispensaries, growers, processors, and physicians can submit enrollment/licensing applications for Oklahoma medical cannabis on the website. Click here for more information