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FRANKFORT, Ky. (Oct. 22, 2025) — The Interim Joint Committee on Health Services on Wednesday received an update on medical cannabis dispensaries in the commonwealth.
Senate Bill 47, adopted in 2023, called on the state Cabinet for Health and Family Services to implement, oversee and regulate a medical cannabis program in Kentucky for individuals with certain health disorders. The legislation designated 2025 as the first year of the program.
Cannon Armstrong, executive director of the state Office of Medical Cannabis, said most program practitioners are advanced practice registered nurses and medical doctors. There are 78 counties represented by practitioners throughout the state and multiple practitioners in some of those counties.
According to the Office of Medical Cannabis, which operates under the auspices of the health cabinet, medical cannabis is “a written certification-based product from the flowers of the Cannabis sativa L. plant. Armstrong said qualifying conditions for obtaining the product include cancer, chronic pain, chronic nausea, multiple sclerosis, post traumatic stress disorder and seizure disorder.
Chronic pain and PTSD are the two most common qualifying conditions now, Armstrong said.
Committee Co-Chair Rep. Kimberly Poore Moser, R-Taylor Mill, asked officials about a $25 fee that has been waived for patients who were approved to receive a medical cannabis card.
Armstrong said waiving the fee was one of the only ways officials could reduce costs for cardholders.
“As you know, this medication is not going to be covered by insurance, so they’re still going to have to pay their practitioners to see them too, and that’s not something that we have the ability to waive or be involved in in regard to the actual practitioner fee from our office,” he said.
Armstrong mentioned a dispensary in Ohio County – The Post Dispensary. According to the dispensary’s website, the facility is expected to open this fall, and it is the state’s first fully approved medical cannabis dispensary.
Other dispensaries are following suit, he said.
“Forty-six of our 48 dispensaries are in their forever homes. They’ve found their permanent locations. We have two more that still need to be settled, but we’re working on that. We should have those done before the end of the year,” Armstrong said.
Rep. Robert Duvall, R-Bowling Green, asked if any investigations have occurred outside the application review to determine if the applicant or license winner has infrastructure, personnel and capital to operate on the first day of business.
Scotty McFarlan, deputy executive director of the Office of Medical Cannabis, said for a license to be issued, the applicant must meet all the requirements in the application process. He said the office’s enforcement division is answering questions and helping applicants throughout the process.
Rep. Scott Sharp, R-Ashland, said he has heard about applicants who have rented out a single residence and filed multiple applications to operate a dispensary under varying company names. He asked if officials at the Office of Medical Cannabis have checked on this issue.
Armstrong answered no, not at this time.
“I would recommend considering that,” Sharp answered.
Sen. Danny Carroll, R-Paducah, Sen. Karen Berg, D-Louisville, and Moser voiced concerns about the characteristics of cannabis gummies, especially appearance. Armstrong said the actual gummies are expected to be colored.
“The Child Fatality and Near Fatality Review Panel met yesterday and, once again, the majority of cases that we heard were ingesting cases from children – some of them THC,” Carroll said. He called colored gummies a “terrible mistake.”
Armstrong said packing for gummies will be child resistant, require a two-step process for the initial opening and will include a tamper-evident seal that is resealable.
“We’re also doing an outreach regarding this topic, including where it should be stored in homes like other prescription medications are,” Armstrong said.
Berg said the gummies need to look like medicine, because they’re being treated as medicine.
House Minority Whip Lindsey Burke, D-Lexington, said she is highly optimistic about the program and how it can improve patients’ lives. She said distributors, growers and dispensary owners have provided positive feedback, calling Kentucky’s program one of the best in the country.
“The thoughtfulness of the regulations, the way this has been structured, makes them feel confident that they are able to do business in a way that is safe, is well-regulated,” she said. “They feel confident that they’re going to be able to help Kentucky patients without exposing children, and I think that’s important to everyone in this room,” she said.
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