After a rush of applications in the last few days, the Department of Health and Senior Services has released the official number of medical marijuana facility applications they received — 2,163.
These applications, for licenses from DHSS for cultivation, dispensary, manufacturing and testing laboratory facilities for medical marijuana, also resulted in more than $13 million in application fees received by the DHSS.
Missourians passed Amendment 2 in November 2018, which legalizes medical marijuana in the state and applies a 4 percent sales tax on products. That tax, along with the fees collected, will go to the new Missouri Veterans’ Health and Care Fund, after the program’s operating expenses are covered.
“I am extremely proud of the team we have built who have been responsible for getting us through this pivotal point for implementing a medical marijuana program for Missourians,” said Lyndall Fraker, director of DHSS Section for Medical Marijuana Regulation. “I am confident that we are developing the best program in the nation, partly through the help of so many collaborative citizens, and the astounding number of applications we received represents the level of interest and enthusiasm from people who want to be a part of this with us.”
Additional information, including facility type and proposed locations for each of the applications will be released in the coming weeks by the DHSS.
The DHSS will license 60 cultivation facilities, 192 dispensaries, 86 medical marijuana-infused manufacturing facilities and 10 testing laboratory facilities. Applications must be approved or denied within 150 of the application submission date.