Local medical cannabis dispensary opening soon

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Finishing touches are being applied by the contractors tasked with building a medical cannabis dispensary east of Mountain Home.

Clint Mickle, one of the owners of Plant Family Therapeutics, located at 5172 U.S. Highway 62/412 East, told KTLO, Classic Hits and The Boot news Tuesday once the contractors have wrapped up, the next step will be an inspection and final approval by state officials.

Mickle says an announcement on an opening date should be made within the next week or so.

The opening of the dispensary was pushed back beyond the anticipated fall opening, after the owners encountered a handful of delays. In an earlier Facebook post, details of the delays were not specified.

In the company’s inaugural community presentation in mid-March to the Mountain Home Rotary Club, Mickle said weather conditions initially posed the first delays.

Plant Family Therapeutics is one of 32 dispensaries to be located across Arkansas in eight zones established by the state, with the idea of creating less travel time for patients in more rural regions of the state. The awarding of the dispensary licenses, as well as five for growing medical cannabis, follows Arkansas voters approving the state’s Medical Marijuana Amendment in 2016.

Zone 2 in North Central Arkansas encompasses 10 counties, including Baxter, Boone, Fulton, Izard, Marion, Newton, Searcy and Stone.

In addition to Plant Family Therapeutics, the other dispensaries in Zone 2 are Fiddler’s Green in Mountain View, Arkansas Natural Products in Clinton and Big Fish of Central Arkansas in Heber Springs.

Before purchasing cannabis from a medical marijuana dispensary, patients must qualify for a medical marijuana certification. Arkansas cannabis clinic doctors first provide qualified patients with the state-required recommendation. The next step in the process is the Arkansas Department of Health. As of Friday, the Arkansas Department of Health had issued 31,655 medical marijuana identification cards.

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