Illinois MMJ Market to Include Kids

The much-anticipated medical marijuana market in Illinois – population 13 million – will include children and teens.

That’s good news for companies that wind up getting business licenses in the state and could fuel the market for infused products, since children won’t be allowed access to smokeable cannabis. It could also give a big boost to companies producing high-CBD products, which are becoming popular treatments for epileptics and others who suffer from seizures.

According to the Chicago Tribune, new rules governing the Illinois Department of Health released on Tuesday include a provision that allows parents to give permission for their children to use cannabis. Anyone under 18 wishing to become a patient will need approval from two doctors, a parent or a legal guardian, and will have to obtain MMJ via an adult caregiver.

The original law only allowed adults to register as MMJ patients, but officials relented after a lobbying effort by parents with children who suffer from seizure disorders such as epilepsy. Similar campaigns have led to child-MMJ laws in multiple other states, especially after CNN aired a documentary about medical cannabis and a tincture called Charlotte’s Web that helped alleviate seizures in a young girl.

Illinois is expected to announce before the end of the year which 60 dispensary applicants and 21 cultivation centers will receive business licenses.