Texas Dispensary in the Works, Despite Flawed CBD Law

Texas Gov. Greg Abbott signed the so-called “Compassionate Use Act” into law last year, and now, despite obvious logistical problems with the measure, at least one company is putting a plan into action to open a CBD dispensary about an hour north of Dallas.

Patrick Moran, the CEO of AquiFlow, is hoping to open the dispensary in the small hamlet of Gunter, population roughly 1,500. On Wednesday, he held a town hall meeting to talk to residents about his plans, according to a local NBC affiliate.

The problem is that the Compassionate Use Act requires a doctor’s prescription for any patient to legally obtain cannabis-based CBD oil, which the law also legalized. That means unless the law is tweaked to change the prescription requirement to recommendation, it’s unlikely that any physicians in the state would be willing to risk their federal  licenses by writing prescriptions for a Schedul I controlled substance such as marijuana.

The law also only allows for those with epilepsy to qualify for CBD, as opposed to a broader array of ailments, meaning the customer base is going to be just a small niche of the larger population that MMJ often helps in other states.

Moran is apparently going ahead with his dispensary plans anyway, and could be open as soon as summer of next year, according to the NBC report.