Despite not having a workable CBD program, roughly 1,300 Georgians have already registered with the state as patients.
That could set the stage for a sizable industry if Georgia lawmakers decide to fully legalize MMJ production and distribution.
The patient registry stems from a 2015 law that allows for the use and possession of CBD, but not its cultivation, processing or sale.
Because CBD oil isn’t available in Georgia, it means registered patients in the state are currently forced to break federal law to obtain their medicine by crossing state lines to acquire it before returning home.
In addition, 311 physicians have registered to legally recommend CBD-based medicine in the state.
Around 25% of the registered patients are children, and another 33% are 50 or older, the independent health care news organization reported. And the state is not sure how many of those may have already died.
Georgia could become the newest state to join the MMJ fold, given that the speaker of the state House of Representatives, Republican David Ralston, has thrown his support behind a bill to permit the cultivation and sale of medical cannabis. If that were to happen, the existing patient count could prove a good start for the new market.
