As medical marijuana has rocketed from a niche product to a multi-million dollar market in Louisiana, a growing number of lawmakers and advocates are questioning the strict limits put on licenses for growing and selling the drug.
The most robust effort to change the insular structure will soon play out at the Legislature. Several prominent lawmakers have filed bills, some competing with one another, to overhaul the system. All of them cite similar goals: Expand access for patients and drive down prices, which have drawn complaints from patients and advocates.
Which route the Legislature takes will determine whether the 11 current licensees – two growers and nine pharmacies – will hold onto their increasingly valuable exclusive rights, or whether other businesses will be allowed into the club. There are also multiple proposals to dramatically change how medical marijuana is regulated, giving the Louisiana Department of Health instead of the state’s agriculture agency oversight power.
As always, a host of political factors are at play – including the entry of Boysie Bollinger, one of the state’s wealthiest businessmen and most generous political donors, into the market.
The two growers are companies hired by the LSU and Southern University agricultural centers, respectively, which were given exclusivity in an unusual arrangement as part of the initial medical marijuana legislation. Lawmakers involved with that effort said the universities’ agriculture centers were chosen because they were struggling financially, and the move would appease certain pot opponents who supported the ag centers. [Read more at The Advocate]
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