Pennsylvania cracks down on dispensary for selling cannabis for $1 a gram

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A brand-new medical marijuana dispensary in Pennsylvania, excited to be selling actual cannabis flower for the first time to registered patients, offered a special deal last week: two strains of flower for $1 a gram, with a limit of 2 grams.

The problem? Pennsylvania forbids such promotions, including any discounts. And the flower in question is typically priced at $10-$15 a gram.

The dispensary, Justice Grown Pennsylvania in Edwardsville, was immediately notified by the state Department of Health it was breaking the rules, according to The (Philadelphia) Inquirer.

But the reprimand came after 134 patients had bought up all the dispensary’s available cheap flower inventory.

Justice Grown CEO Abbe Kruger told the newspaper that what the dispensary did was “completely compliant” with the law.

“It didn’t even fit the definition of a discount because it had never been priced before,” she said. “We just priced it that low.”

But state regulators don’t see it that way.

“You can’t run a promotional sale on medical marijuana. We let them know that they were in violation,” a health department spokeswoman told The Inquirer.

It appears the dispensary won’t face any explicit punishment from the state, such as fines or a suspension of its business license.

“We realize this is a new business structure. There isn’t a formula (for discipline). We’re working through it,” the health department spokeswoman said.