You may have heard about the Metrc seed-to-sale statewide inventory tracking system, which all OMMA-licensed businesses must use by May 26.
But what does it mean for patients?
Basically, anything for sale at a dispensary will soon have a complete tracking history available — every seed that goes into a licensed OMMA grower's soil will be identified using a tagging system that tracks it all the way to a dispensary's shelves and into your hands. Patient information and application records are sealed to protect your privacy.
Anything on a dispensary's shelves is required to have passed lab tests for contaminants, but the seed-to-sale tracking system will make it much easier for dispensaries to contact patients in the rare event that OMMA later recalls a product.
The seed-to-sale system will also make it easier to track high-level data across the medical marijuana industry. Through a partnership with NCS Analytics, much of that information will soon be available on a public dashboard. You'll be able to see updated data about Oklahoma's medical marijuana industry — how much cannabis is being grown and sold, and much more.
You can learn more about Metrc on our website. Stay tuned for updates on the public dashboard.
If OMMA approved your current patient license before Jan. 10, 2022, you'll need to set up your account in our new licensing portal before you renew. If you already did that when you received an email from us the week of Jan. 24, you're all set. If not, keep reading.
All your licensing data is in an old licensing portal that we no longer use. Migrating it to the new portal takes just a few clicks — taking a couple of minutes to do it now will save you time and effort in the future.
Start with a link for existing licensees. You'll be prompted to set up a login for the new Thentia licensing portal. When you're done, that's it. OMMA will send you an email 30 days before your license expires with a link to start the renewal process, and because you're already in the new system, you'll be good to go.
The new portal makes it easier for you to do things like change your address, or request a replacement card if you lose yours. You can read more about it on our website.
If you have questions, send an email to OMMACommunications@ok.gov.
How long does it take OMMA to process a patient license renewal application?
Right now, OMMA is processing patient license renewal applications in 8 business days. Then it takes a couple of days to print the license card, plus USPS mail time. You can start the renewal process 30 days before your license expires (7 days for out-of-state licenses).
Can I share my medical marijuana products with other licensed patients?
No. Our rules say patients "shall not sell or otherwise transfer" products to anyone else, including other licensed patients. See OAC 310:681-2-9(a).
Q: What's the difference between a licensing portal login and a patient profile?
A licensing portal login is tied to an email address and has a password. It's for an account in the Thentia licensing portal — OMMA’s platform for processing patient and business license applications.
A patient profile is tied to a specific person, plus the information they include to apply for a patient license, like their address, photo and ID.
Each login can have more than one patient profile attached to it. That means there's an important extra step if you use one login to apply for multiple people's patient licenses, like if you help family members with their applications, or as often happens at patient clinics.
After you log in to the patient portal, you must either select an existing profile using the button next to the patient's name, or create a new profile for a new applicant using the button at the bottom of the screen.
Where does all the tax money go when I buy medical marijuana?
You pay a 7% medical marijuana excise tax, plus state and local sales tax, when you buy medical marijuana. The state and local sales tax rate depends on where you live — OMMA doesn't get any of it, but it goes to your local governments and core state services.
State law defines what happens to the 7% excise tax. The first $65 million is split between the State Public Common School Building Equalization Fund (59.23%), OMMA (34.62%) and the Health Department (6.15%). Anything beyond $65 million goes into the General Revenue Fund of the State Treasury.
OMMA may receive up to $22.5 million from the excise tax each year, and use it to fund operations, materials, contracts and salaries. OMMA also receives revenue from license application fees.
So far, OMMA's authorized revenue has exceeded our authorized budget every year. The difference is available to the Legislature for discretionary spending on other core state services. For example, the Legislature has allocated about $67.5 million in OMMA revenue to Common Education since fiscal year 2020.
A few important dates to take note of are below.
Day |
Date |
Event |
Thursday |
May 26 |
Deadline for growers, processors, dispensaries and labs to be seed-to-sale compliant |
Friday |
May 27 |
Reddit AMA at r/OKmarijuana on Patient Licensing |
Chances are that as a medical marijuana patient, you know what THC is — a cannabinoid compound that affects the potency of medical marijuana. But there are different forms of it, and the differences are important.
Delta 9 THC is what most people think of when they think of THC. Simply put, it’s the biggest factor in what makes you feel different after using medical marijuana. You can feel its effects within minutes of smoking or vaporizing it, or a while longer after ingesting it. Delta 9 THC is regulated, and OMMA requires all medical marijuana and medical marijuana products for sale at dispensaries to be tested for THC and terpene potency, with the results on the packaging label for patients to find easily. The medical marijuana and medical marijuana products must also be tested for safety based on OMMA standards, with the results available for patients to see.
Delta 8 THC is relatively new to the public consciousness. Only very small amounts occur naturally in marijuana plants, so commercial Delta 8 THC is synthesized from CBD oil using a chemical process. Delta 8 isn’t as potent as the same amount of Delta 9, and the effects take longer to develop. Delta 8 is largely unregulated. There's no requirement for Delta 8 products to be tested for safety, unless they also have Delta 9.
Products with Delta 9 are only available for legal sale at licensed dispensaries. But Delta 8's unregulated status means you may see those products at non-medical marijuana businesses with packaging or advertising similar to authentic medical marijuana products that have been tested for safety. Sometimes these Delta 8 products are advertised for sale with "no medical card needed," and may or may not include obvious references to Delta 8, THC, CBD or marijuana in general.
If you're at a dispensary and are unsure about whether something you're about to buy has Delta 8 or Delta 9 (or both), ask a dispensary employee.
When Oklahomans voted on SQ 788, they were also voting to put the revenue generated from sales toward mental health and substance abuse support programs — initiatives that would help their fellow Oklahomans.
We're proud to announce a partnership with the Office of Juvenile Affairs (OJA) to fund statewide evidence-based substance abuse interventions. The Functional Family Therapy (FFT) program helps children with substance abuse or disuse issues get treatment at home.
OMMA Executive Director Adria Berry and OJA Executive Director Rachel Holt recently met to discuss what the $2 million allocation will mean for families across the state. You can watch and listen to their conversation on YouTube. This is just one of the programs revenue from the excise tax is helping to fund. Read more in our news release.
If you need to surrender your patient license, you can now do it online as long as you're set up in our new patient licensing portal.
Once you're logged in, you simply find "Surrender License" under the "Licensing Menu" and follow the prompts. Find more details on our website.
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