Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission Voids & Awards Licenses
Big news for medical cannabis in Alabama: it’s finally happening!
Medical cannabis in Alabama has been moving at a snail’s pace since 2021. While it’s taken years for it to finally make its way into daily life, things are starting to look up and Alabama residents might have access to their medicine by 2024.
The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission (AMCC) had a hiccup recently when they realized there were some scoring discrepancies for the applicants and ultimately decided to scrap the licenses they’d awarded on June 12th. On August 10, 2023, the AMCC met up again and handed out new licenses to some lucky winners. Who got the golden tickets? Here’s the rundown:
Integrated Facility Licenses (Allowed to cultivate, process and distribute medical cannabis)
- Insa Alabama, LLC
- Flowerwood Medical Cannabis, LLC
- Southeast Cannabis Company, LLC
- Sustainable Alabama, LLC
- TheraTrue Alabama, LLC
Cultivator License (Allowed to cultivate medical cannabis)
- Gulf Shore Remedies, LLC
- Pure by Sirmon Farms, LLC
- Blackberry Farms, LLC
- Twisted Herb Cultivation, LLC
- I AM FARMS
- Greenway Botanicals, LLC
- CRC of Alabama, LLC
Processor License (Allowed to process medical cannabis into concentrates, tinctures, and edibles)
- Enchanted Green, LLC
- 1819 Labs, LLC
- Organic Harvest Lab, LLC
- Jasper Development Group Inc.
Dispensary License (Allowed to open and operate medical dispensaries)
- Yellowhammer Medical Dispensaries, LLC
- CCS of Alabama, LLC
- RJK Holdings AL, LLC
- Statewide Property Holdings AL, LLC
Secure Transport License (Allowed to transport and distribute medical cannabis)
- Tyler Van Lines, LLC
- International Communication, LLC
- XLCR, Inc.
State Testing Laboratory License (Allowed to test medical cannabis for safety and potency)
- Certus Laboratories
So how did we finally get here?
The AMCC teamed up with the University of South Alabama to review 90 applications. They had a bunch of experts (66, to be exact) looking at stuff like money matters, business plans, operations, security, and more.
Back in June, the AMCC was all set to hand out those licenses, but then things came to a screeching halt when members spotted something off about the scores and decided to do the right thing. Chairman Rex Vaughn owned up to the score mix-up and reassured everyone that the matter would be delayed but resolved.
They brought in KPMG, an internationally recognized accounting firm – to make sure the scores were correct. Long story short, the recalculated scores matched up, and everyone gave a nod of approval. Winners had two weeks to seal the deal and even those who didn’t make the cut were able to appeal and make a case for a second chance.
With all licenses awarded, things are finally moving forward. Once these licenses are official, MMJ doctors in Alabama can start recommending patients for medical marijuana cards, and we’re looking at having a functioning medical cannabis program in Alabama within the next year or so.
This is just the start! Even though the AMCC has some limits on how many licenses they can hand out right now, they’re planning a second round of applications to allow for more licenses in the future.
Alabama’s finally taking a big leap into the medical cannabis world. With this discrepancy out of the way and plenty of licenses awarded, it’s a game-changer, and Alabama residents can start taking the prospect of medical cannabis in daily life seriously.
