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US: Medical cannabis distribution starts in Northeast Florida Jordan Ferrell First Coast News Thursday 26 Jan 2017 The changing of the times is no doubt tangible for one family of chestnut farmers here in Northeast Florida. Tucked away in the midst of a tree farm in Alachua County sits one of only seven businesses in the state that are legally allowed to produce and dispense medicinal cannabis. Last week, Chestnut Hill Tree Farm, or CHT Medical, produced its first batches of low-grade THC medicine for the dozen or so clients they have in the region. We are just beginning to start ramping up our production,” said Robert Wallace, President of CHT Medical. “What you see here is our prototype of each of the different phases of the operation, and we’ve just started delivering, so we will be able to service many, many more as we expand.” The product CHT Medical is manufacturing is an oil that contains high amounts of an active ingredient known as cannabidiol, or CBD for short. It’s similar to the more well-known THC found in your common marijuana plant, but does not produce the same psychoactive results. In essence, CBD doesn’t get you high On the contrary, CBD is known for its anti-psychotic properties, as well as anti-inflammatory and anti-epileptic. Similar to the marijuana strain Charlotte’s Web, which gained popularity back in 2013 for its usefulness in reducing grand mal seizures, CHT’s strain of high-CBD cannabis is available in a variety of forms ranging from oral capsules to vaporizing cartridges. “The research that needs to be done is to understand what combination of different CBDs creates what effect in the body,” Wallace said. “One stops pain. One makes you hungry. One makes you awake. One makes you sleepy. That’s all because of the different combinations, or entourage effect, of the different cannabinoids acting in the body.” Although already allowed in some capacity, the passing of Amendment 2 made way for the production and distribution of both THC and CBD forms of medicine. In response to the approved ballot measure, CHT has already begun growing traditional high-THC strains of marijuana in addition to its high-CBD ones. As of now though, only non-smokable CBD oil is being processed and distributed here. Wallace said CHT plans on opening an Alachua County storefront within the next several months, but like most other dispensaries, its product is currently having to be delivered. And the delivery of medical cannabis might be the only viable option for a lot of patients, as counties begin filing legislation that would postpone the opening of dispensaries in those specific counties. “I’m a cancer survivor,” Wallace said, as he stood amongst his high-CBD strains of marijuana. “My mom and dad died of cancer. My grandfather died of cancer. If we can help people go through chemo or even potentially cure different types of cancer, it will be a really valuable contribution.” The State of Florida has until September of this year to finalize such rules as possession limits, the registration process for Medical Marijuana Treatment Centers, qualifying medical conditions and guidelines as to how the medicine can be administered. Last Tuesday, the Florida Department of Health released a preliminary text of those proposed rules. For the most part, these rules have remained in step with the previously established Florida Statute 381.986. Possibly the most important aspect in terms of potential economic impact is that there has been no mention of expanding or reforming the current registration and hearing process required to become a dispensary. “It was a very time consuming and expensive process,” said Wallace. “We were successful because of the things we said we would do in our application.” There have been a total of 28 applicants since 2015, with Chestnut Hill Tree Farm’s 1,000-page application being one of the lucky few that received the rubberstamp of approval. “I haven’t paid attention to that,” Wallace replied when asked about other dispensaries struggling to gain approval. “We’ve been focused on getting medicine to patients. That’s been our goal.” Another factor that has remained unchanged in this preliminary text are the 10 “qualifying debilitating medical conditions.” The 10 are cancer, epilepsy, glaucoma, human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), Crohn’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis. And for those who are hoping Amendment 2 might make way for smokable forms of cannabis, you may be disappointed. The Department of Health has not shown an initial interest in changing their definition of “Medical use,” as it reads in the statute. However, the vaporizing of cannabis oil is not considered smoking at this point. Rule development workshops begin in Florida next month, with the first being held in Jacksonville on Monday, Feb. 6 at the Duval County Health Department. http://www.firstcoastnews.com/news/medical-cannabis-distribution-starts-in-northeast-florida/392414257
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