Many business people in Oregon are opting for the more lucrative recreational business as a new law is introduced to ban marijuana vendors from selling both recreational and medical pot at the same time.
Although the intentions of the law are still unknown, cannabis dispensaries have been forced to choose between recreational and medical pot, with many going for the more lucrative recreational pot.
Lawmakers want the rules to begin working this weekend. In the wake of the new law, stores and dispensaries may have to take a few days break in order to make a decision on which market to cater for.
According to a report by KOBI5, medical sales are going down, with a large swath of dispensaries choosing to sell to customers who want recreational pot.
This is an easy choice for majority of the vendors who say that recreational pot takes up a larger portion of their customer base than medical marijuana.
Crystal Plotner, a dispensary manager in Oregon, told KOBI5 that, “Currently 85 percent of our customers are recreational, so if we were to stay medical we drop down to probably only 15 percent of our existing sales, and we wouldn’t be able to survive.”
28 states have legalized medical marijuana and the momentum for further legalization appears to be increasing. Washington, D.C. has also legalized recreational use of the substance.
Critics have expressed fear that the new law will upset Oregon’s medical marijuana industry and eliminate options for patients.
On Election Day, the supporters of recreational marijuana scored huge victories, and this has left medical professionals in fear that a “big pot” industry will leave them out in the cold.
Others see things differently, stating that medical vendors are just upset they are losing their monopoly of the industry. They argue that this situation will help patients access medical marijuana at cheaper prices since the “big pot” industry is bound to create a competitive environment with lower prices.
