MINNEAPOLIS — Legalized medical marijuana in its purest form, dried flower, is now for sale in Minnesota.
Starting Tuesday, March 1, everyone who is registered for medical marijuana use can apply to obtain flower.
But a few patients who were already vetted got their hands on some of Minnesota's first legal bud.
More than 30,000 people in the state of Minnesota are already in a medical marijuana program according to the Minnesota Department of Health.
Chris Tholkes, the director of the office of medical cannabis with the health department, said flower will provide a cheaper alternative to the already legal medical wax and topical applications of weed.
"The number one complaint we have heard from patients over the years is that the price point really," Tholkes said. "It's [flower] cheaper because it's not concentrated like wax pens."
Tholkes also said patients, on average, spend $300 a month on medical marijuana products. The introduction of bud, Tholkes added, would bring that price down immensely and entice more people to apply for medical marijuana.
To apply to the state's medical marijuana program, you have to have a referral from a medical professional.
The start of medical bud sales comes with Governor Tim Walz's proposal to fund a committee to review full recreational legalization of cannabis by 2024, using some surplus funds that will be in the upcoming budget discussions.
If it survives legislative discussions, it could bring in $25 million for the formation of a Cannabis Management Office, which would work on a framework for statewide recreational use, and grants to assist people looking to enter the market.
But for now, Minnesotans who depend on medical marijuana have a new way of consuming weed.
Tholkes said it was a long time coming.
"I think it was political will, it's a medical program, and I think that people don't associate smoking cannabis as a medical form of the drug."
Check here to see the locations of legal dispensaries in Minnesota selling dried flower cannabis.
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