Oregon loosens up marijuana delivery rules

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Deliveries will be allowed to areas where retail sales aren’t permitted

Oregonians who rely on medical marijuana have received a little bit of good news. State regulators will now allow up to eight ounces of cannabis to be purchased in a single trip, making it less of a hassle to source their supplies. The amount had been dropped to one ounce this past August after the regulators became concerned that some purchasers were buying excess quantities to sell to others. In another positive turn for medical marijuana patients in the state, delivery service will be expanded across the state.

Going forward, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) will permit marijuana deliveries to any region in the state that has prohibited licensed marijuana use. This includes those cities that have implemented a ban on retail sales of marijuana. The OLCC will implement the new policy beginning December 28.

By some estimates, there are currently more than 40,000 medical marijuana patients in Oregon. The new rules are being put in place in order to find a healthy balance between laws and citizens’ reliance on marijuana while controlling illegal sales. As explains a spokesman for the OLCC, Mark Pettinger, “Let’s just say it’s another opportunity to provide medical patients with access to the medicine they need.” Among those are the patients who are not able to travel or who live in “cannabis retail deserts.”

The OLCC also introduced a temporary rule that will allow hemp producers and handlers to continue to operate while the state develops permanent rules. That measure comes in the wake of the federal government approved the 2018 Farm Bill last week.