February 2019 is almost halfway gone, meaning that we are almost 66% through the first quarter of 2019 already. The good news is that our medical cannabis program in Florida is continuing to expand with new product offerings. The bad news is that the Florida Legislature is trying to create more issues for patients who wish to smoke their cannabis. We’ve got a mixed bag of news in this week’s update.
GrowHealthy released more strains in vape carts and distillate syringes
Earlier this week, GrowHealthy announced via their Instagram page that there are now several new strains available, some for only a limited time. They are:
Sativa: Sour Tangie and 99 Problems
Indica: Alien Bubba Berry
All these strains are processed with cannabis-derived terpenes, meaning that they are injected with the exact terpenes in the exact ratios found in the respective flower strains.
Trulieve released Indica Rick Simpson Oil (RSO) and a new flower strain
Until this week, Trulieve has only had hybrid RSO available. (For more information on RSO and its benefits, click here.) However, Trulieve now offers RSO in indica varieties as well – currently Zkittlez is the only strain available; you can order it here.
Trulieve also rolled out yet another new flower strain this past week well- a hybrid strain called Gilz Nilz. We reviewed this strain recently; you can find the review here. It is a sativa-dominant hybrid with strong stimulating cerebral effects.
Vidacann will soon release their distillate with cannabis-derived terpenes
Vidacann has announced via their Instagram page that their distillate syringe product is very close to completion and release. We detailed this announcement in another post last week; so far, 3 strains have been announced for this product: Strawberry Cough, OG Kush, and Pakistani Chitral Kush. This will offer even more “entourage effect” (two or more cannabinoids working together) options for Florida patients; this is a great thing, as most patients prefer options with more than one cannabinoid for optimum relief of their symptoms.
The Florida Legislature continues to attempt to create hurdles for patients
As we detailed in updates earlier this year, Florida Governor Ron Desantis has given the Florida legislature until mid-March to correct the current medical cannabis law to address smoking of cannabis. The legislature, unfortunately, is playing their usual game of creating ways to milk every dollar out of sick and suffering Floridians. The newest shenanigans of the primarily Republican legislature call for patients to have to visit another doctor to testify that smoking is the best method for the patient to intake cannabis. There are also provisions that require patients to be “reviewed” by a panel on a case-by-case basis for smoking their cannabis.
Needless to say, the developments have drawn outrage from all interests of the Florida cannabis market, and speculation is rife on how exactly Ron Desantis will respond to these initiatives from the legislature. We hope this atrocious law will not be accepted, but we are anxiously awaiting to see how events transpire between now and March 2019.
Closing Thoughts
The fact that more products are becoming available is promising, but the audacity of the Florida legislature to continue to play games with the quality of life of so many patients, is discouraging. Hopefully, Governor Ron Desantis will stick to his word of having a Florida cannabis law that the patients feel is exactly what they voted for in 2016. In the mean time, we will continue to try more products as they become available, and provide you all with the latest updates and product reviews in the program. One thing is for certain: it’s going to be a long month until mid-March, when we find out just how the “smoking ban” of cannabis in Florida will ultimately be addressed. We hope that the will of the people will prevail, and will do everything we can to help ensure that happens.
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Florida Medical Cannabis Collective 
What needs to happen in addition to the repeal of the smoking ban is a comprehensive protection of patients from existing paraphernalia laws. The current system only allows for use of delivery devices issued by dispensaries, despite the fact that most of them are overpriced and ineffective, and all of them are rebranded products you can buy at a smoke shop or vape shop. Allowing patients to smoke as the constitution implies is pointless if they are not also permitted to possess and use things like rolling papers, grinders, storage containers, pipes, non-dispensary issued vaporizers, and other such materials. An exemption for MMJ cardholders to the sections of Florida Statute 893.145 that specifically relate to cannabis is necessary for the program to exist as it was intended to.
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Very good points. Thank you for the reply —
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I am more than happy to contribute to the discussion. There are currently some very interesting and lively talks regarding the legalities of “marijuana delivery devices” as defined in Florida Statute 381.986 over at http://www.reddit.com/r/FLMedicalTrees if anyone is interested in participating. I find that most people, including some doctors and dispensary employees, are oblivious to some of the specific details of the law, especially when it comes to using devices not issued by a dispensary to deliver medical cannabis.
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