EASTLAKE - Everything's coming up green at Buckeye Relief in Eastlake, Ohio's first level-one medical marijuana grow facility, but bureaucracy may keep patients and caregivers feeling blue for a little while longer.
The September 1st distribution date has come and gone, partly due to red-tape between the Ohio Department of Commerce, the State Medical Board and the Board of Pharmacy.
Grant Miller from the Pharmacy Board explained the state's position, saying "Patients and caregivers still have laws to abide by even if they have a legitimate recommendation."
Putting it bluntly, that means even though medical cannabis may be legal in ohio as of next saturday, the state doesn't want folks going around with weed and saying it's for medical use.
But for parent's like Kristian Kibler, who's daughter Lola suffers from seizures, it can't come fast enough. He told channel 3 news "I want to see what my daughter's really like instead of being in a cloud of anti-seizure drugs."
Co-Founder of Buckeye Relief, Andy Rayburn, says that's exactly why he got into the business. He said "We want to leave a contribution with real medical evidence with all the things this plant can do for patients."
Unfortunately, for families like the Kibler's, they'll have to wait a little longer. The Board of Pharmacy handles signing patients up, and that registration won't start until 60 days before the dispensaries open shop, which could take another four months.
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(image courtesy Getty Images/video courtesy WKYC-TV)