Medical Cannabis Program on the Decline in New Jersey
Medical cannabis is at odds with adult-use cannabis industries in most states where recreational cannabis is legal. This is also the case for New Jersey, where its medical cannabis program patient numbers have decreased significantly.
According to a recent report published by the New Jersey Monitor, patients believe that the medical program isn’t being maintained. The news outlet spoke with Michael Wiehl, a local patient, about his concerns. “It’s like they’re not even faking an effort anymore, like feigning interest in saving the program. It just seems like there’s so much more they can do, and I don’t understand why they stopped caring about the medical program,” Wiehl said. “They just did.”
New Jersey’s medical cannabis program (established by the law also called the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act) went into effect in January 2010, and later adult-use cannabis sales began in April 2022. Data reported on April 15 shows that there are roughly 80,000 medical cannabis patients in New Jersey, although at its peak, the state had more than 129,000 registered patients as of May 2022.
Medical cannabis sales have also decreased in recent years as well. Once at a height of $226 million brought in in 2022, 2023 numbers show that the state only collected $124 million. Adult-use sales on the other hand have continued to rise, with 2023 numbers showing $675 million.
Leaders of the New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission (NJ-CRC), such as executive director Jeff Brown, have said that they’re looking into a course of action to support its medical cannabis program with “an unwavering commitment to patient access.” This included a move to reduce medical cannabis card fees from $200 to $10, and giving patients a digital card for free.
However, the CRC has stated that the reason for the decrease in medical cannabis patient enrollment is because patients must sacrifice paying for medical cannabis in lieu of the cost for higher priced doctor appointments. “Despite what the NJ-CRC has done so far—eliminating registration fee and requiring Alternative Treatment Center to preserve priority access for patients—patients are seemingly leaving the program because they cannot afford the fees they are being charged by some doctors,” Brown explained.
State law requires that doctors certify patients who qualify for medical cannabis. This includes patients suffering from conditions such as epilepsy, post-traumatic stress disorder, glaucoma, cancer, anxiety, chronic pain, opioid use disorder, and more. There are approximately 1,500 doctors who are allowed to certify patients, but many of them are not taking new patients at this time.
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