Ohio: Board of Pharmacy To Allocate Additional Provisional Dispensary Licenses

On April 19, 2021, the State of Ohio Board of Pharmacy approved increasing the number of dispensary licenses in Ohio by 73. If all 73 licenses are awarded, this will bring the total number of dispensary licenses to 130 (57 current + 73 approved).
A copy of the presentation can be accessed here: www.pharmacy.ohio.gov/RFA2overview
A frequently asked questions document can be accessed here: www.pharmacy.ohio.gov/RFA2FAQ
Next Steps: The licenses will be awarded using an application process (known as RFA II) that is expected to be announced in spring/summer 2021. The timing of this announcement will be based on when the Board’s pending rule changes regarding the application process are made final.
As previously done, RFA II will require applicants to specify the district(s) wherein they are applying, and provisional dispensary licenses will be awarded based on those districts. The districts will remain the same as in the previous RFA. Dispensary applications will then be evaluated to determine who is a qualified applicant.
As indicated in the presentation, all viable applications will then be entered into a lottery system, wherein individual lotteries will be held for each dispensary district with available licenses. A lottery system for qualified applicants requires the Board to consider objective, rather than subjective, criteria which can result in a fairer, more streamlined system for awarding dispensary licenses.
More information on RFA II will be posted to the Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program website (www.medicalmarijuana.ohio.gov) when the application process is announced in spring/summer 2021. Those who are interested are encouraged to sign up for updates on the Program’s homepage.

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