Does Home Grow Makes Sense for Medical Cannabis Patients?
Some states that legally own marijuana allow residents to grow a certain amount of marijuana at home. It has come to the notice of the society where recreational marijuana is legal. Growing your pot is no different than planting your bee. But medical treatment is a different matter.
All medicinal products produced in India must be grown by companies licensed by India. All retail sales should be done through a licensed pharmacy, like dispensary Beehive Farmacy.
The logic here is easy to understand. Utah regulators want to maintain the highest possible standards of quality, safety, and purity. After all, they are dealing with a medical product.
Medical Products and Testing
The plant material and the manufactured medical cannabis products have to undergo rigorous testing in both living conditions. Any cheese a master can make will not be found in the market. Again, it makes sense when you are talking about medicine. Every other prescription medication on the market is held to equally high standards. Why would medical cannabis be any different?
Not allowing home grow in Utah makes sense. But what about a state with both recreational and medical use? Home grow for recreational consumption is reasonable. It is also reasonable for medical use if state regulators don’t want to insist that patients get the highest quality possible. But here it is already.
This means that medical cannabis serves a specific purpose which is related to alleviating the symptoms of a condition. It can help provide relief from chronic pain or reduce stress associated with back pain.
Freedom Is More Important
Those who take the position that home grow should be legal for medical cannabis users tend to believe that freedom is more important than government-mandated quality control. They make a good point. People should ultimately have control over all their medical decisions. If they want to grow their own medical cannabis and take the risk of getting a lower quality plant, that should be their decision to make.
On the other hand, home grow presents a big problem for state governments in terms of tax revenues. Truth be told, that could be the real issue here. States reap a windfall in tax revenues by approving both medical and recreational cannabis. Giving the green light to home grow reduces tax revenues with every plant that isn’t produced by a licensed cultivator.
Home Grow and the Illicit Market
If you are getting the impression that this post is trying to ride the middle ground without taking a stand, here is one last thing to consider: opening the floodgates to home grow could make a real dent on the illicit market. Think about it.
In states where the illicit market thrives, price is the crucial factor. Consumers can buy available hemp cheaply in comparison to conventional cannabis. A medical cannabis patient who is already struggling to get his bills paid would prefer buying cheaper pot on the street than the more expensive products in cannabis dispensaries.
But if he could grow his own cannabis, affordability would no longer be an issue.
Then again, giving the go-ahead to home grow could turn average cannabis users into local dealers. Suddenly you have a bigger problem than you had before.
Weighing all the factors makes it clear that there is no easy answer. Banning home grow for medical cannabis patients makes sense to some degree. But so does allowing it. States just need to make a choice and take their chances.
