To participate in the program, a physician must be certified through the Department of Health. If accepted, the Department will issue an identification card that will allow them access to the drug through a state-permitted dispensary. This card also serves as protection from the law if they are apprehended with any amount of medical marijuana. The physician must be registered with the Department of Health through a valid license to practice medicine in PA and will have to take a four-hour course administered by the Department.
Once qualified, a doctor can’t do certain things when making a certification. He/she cannot conduct exams through telemedicine, receive pay or refer patients to marijuana businesses, conduct exams where marijuana is sold, have any economic involvement with a grower or dispensary, advertise a cultivation center or dispensary, help patients acquire the drug, or offer advice on usage.
Growing
Under the new law, patients and doctors cannot grow their marijuana. Instead, the state will license up to 25 growers and processors to grow and distribute medical marijuana to dispensaries. Anyone seeking to attain one of these licenses must pay an initial application fee of $10,000. In their application, they have to provide an affidavit proving that they have at least $2 million in capital, with half a million in deposit in a financial institution.
