What’s in a name?
A lot – at least in the case of Michigan. What you call your medical marijuana establishment is important to regulators.
The state’s rules are spelled out in an advisory bulletin issued Monday by the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs.
A medical marijuana provisioning center – the preferred term – “may not refer to itself as a ‘dispensary’ and may not use the word ‘dispensary’ in its advertising,” according to the bulletin.
The Detroit Free Press reported the restrictive terminology is a nod to the Michigan Public Health Code. The newspaper said the code asserts certain words and phrases are “restricted to those people authorized to use them.”
- Pharmacy, pharmacist, Pharm.D, doctor of pharmacy, pharmacy intern, pharmacy technician, licensed pharmacy technician, certified pharmacy technician , CPhT or r.ph
- Apothecary
- Drugstore, druggist, medicine store
- Prescriptions
This is from a state that spells marijuana with an “h” instead of a “j.”
As a state official told Marijuana Business Daily recently, “marihuana” was enshrined in the first statute about the industry decades ago and has been used since. Now it would have to be changed by law.
