At long last, the first Massachusetts dispensary is expected to open for business.
Exactly when is still up in the air, though.
Alternative Therapies Group in Salem, Massachusetts, is set to launch “soon,” though it has not yet set a specific date to begin serving customers, according to the Boston Globe.
The lack of a timeline is due to a new three-month waiver the company received on Friday from Gov. Charlie Baker’s office, which allows the dispensary to begin selling without completing required testing.
Testing labs in Massachusetts are not yet fully functioning, but the governor’s office granted the waiver because officials believe patients have waited long enough, according to the Globe.
“This waiver will allow industry laboratories a little more time to reach full operation while providing safe amounts of medical marijuana for qualifying patients who need it,” Baker said in a statement to the Globe.
The dispensary will open as soon as a final state inspection is completed. The inspection has not yet been scheduled.
Though Massachusetts legalized MMJ in 2012, the program’s rollout has been delayed for years due to lawsuits and administrative holdups.
