Illinois Allowing Curbside Medical Marijuana Sales Amid COVID-19 Outbreak

Illinois is trying to reduce the amount of the new virus transmissions in dispensaries.
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Amid a global pandemic that has changed the way we interact and live, the state of Illinois will allow medical marijuana dispensaries to conduct curbside sales for the duration of the month.

The new rules were announced this week by the Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation as part of the state’s efforts to combat the spread of COVID-19. “The guidelines will permit the dispensary to sell medical cannabis on the dispensary’s property or on a public walkway or curb adjacent to the dispensary. Medical cannabis patients will be able to continue to utilize their designated caregiver to purchase medicine for them,” the agency said in a press release on Tuesday. “However, dispensaries may not deliver medical cannabis to a patient or caregiver’s home. These rules do not apply to adult use cannabis sales; those must still take place inside the limited access area.”

The Illinois Department of Financial and Professional Regulation said that “medical cannabis patients may be particularly vulnerable to COVID-19 due to pre-existing conditions,” which was a factor in instituting the new guidelines. Those new rules will be in effect until March 30. 

“Our top priority is to minimize the risk of and protect as many people from exposure to COVID-19,” said Toi Hutchinson, a senior advisor for cannabis control to Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker. “These steps prioritize that critical objective, while also ensuring medical patients have access to the medicine they need.”

The Finer Details of The New Protocols

Under the new protocols, the “exchange of cash and product must take place on the dispensary’s property or on a public walkway or at the curb of the street adjacent to the dispensary,” but the agency made it clear that dispensaries “may not deliver cannabis to a patient or caregiver’s home.” 

The department said that dispensaries must “take steps to ensure consumers who come inside do not come within six feet of one another,” which may require “moving lines outside the dispensary, closing down some point-of-sale systems, distancing patient/caregiver lines within larger dispensaries, and minimizing the time a patient/caregiver stands near agents.” 

The Department of Financial and Professional Regulation also emphasized the importance of maintaining a sanitary environment, saying that dispensaries must require “dispensary agents to wash their hand frequently throughout the day and provide an ample supply of disinfectant hand soap,” while also requiring the dispensaries to disinfect “surfaces patients are required to touch, such as ordering tablets or door handles every 30 minutes.”

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3 comments
  1. The outbreak of COVID-19 has been affecting the world brutally. It started in December and spread all over the world within days. The thing is people haven’t yet realized the intensity of this pandemic. Even after lockdown and Quarantine some people have failed to sit at their homes. I really appreciate the state of Illinois for introducing new protocols in accordance with this outbreak. Pandemic has changed the way we socialize and interact. In many other states, there are contact-free deliveries but it’s better to get your desired medicine from the dispensary ourselves so that no one could get deprived of their medical treatments. Yet I also support the idea of contactless delivery only if dispensaries introduce online payments so that they would be no chance of stepping out of houses to hand over cash to the delivery agent and get your package.
    Respect the situation, Till now the amount of affected people worldwide has crossed 3.5 million. Stay Home, Stay Safe.

  2. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus. There are studies showing that Cannabis can be a good medical option to cure this Novel Corona Virus Disease 2019, but not likely in some state, where, it has no still legality on the usage of Cannabis as a medical option. But still thank you for pointing these knowledge out!

  3. This may sound surprising to some of you, but more people have actually started consuming cannabis because of the pandemic. Many of those who have been regular users even before the Coronavirus crisis happened even increased their consumption since quarantine started. https://mdberry.com/effectiveness-medical-marijuana-ptsd/The Coronavirus crisis has definitely pushed people to become more conscious of their health and wellbeing. Natural health remedies have gotten more popular since people are trying their best to fend off infections without resorting to conventional drugs. It’s not surprising why cannabis health products and other related remedies (such as CBD oils and pills) are gaining more traction. Add that to the fact that cannabis is known to help with anxiety — something that many of us struggle with these days.

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