A little dispensary in the small town of Spiro, OK (10 miles from Ft. Smith,AR) was busted this week after the owner was caught selling methamphetamines twice to an undercover agent.  the news is angering thousands of patients who worry that the politics of the incident will become harmful to their health, if the incident leads to federal action or state regulations getting even more difficult for them to continue treatment of their frail health.
  This is the worst case scenario for those who fear a federal crack down. The fact that the Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics & Dangerous Drugs handled the matter, & not a federal raid by FBI or DEA agents; is actually a god-send to patients and the law-abiding businesses producing, processing, and retailing the medicines. 
  The OBNDD completely confiscated the entire dispensary inventory and hauled it off.  It will likely be considered and asset forfeiture because it's part of a drug crime. The OBNDD could reassign or sell it to another licensed dispensary, but the arrested dispensary owner may also fight to have it used as collateral for his bond & attorney fees in his criminal trial. This could lead to landmark rulings for the industry.

  The Oklahoma Tax Commission (OTC) reports that tax collections for medical marijuana retail transactions have sharply risen again, in June. This makes the 5th consecutive month of increase of at least 33% of the month prior. These sales are subject to a 7% special tax which the OTC deemed an 'excise tax'. The OTC is also demanding that each retail sale also pay all common local and state sales tax.
  The legislature avoided correcting the loophole and double taxation during the spring session, leaving patients to struggle with about a 16% tax on all purchased cannabis medicines. This confiscatory tax rate is helping keep the illegal "black market" cartels in  business throughout Oklahoma. Many patients still patronize the black market dealers because the price is competitive.
  Total reported sales are now over 30 million per month and garnering about $5 million in taxes. Liquor taxes currently bring in about $10 million per month, and tobacco taxes are dropping well below $10 million per month. Not that tobacco consumption is flat, but many Indian tribes are selling cigarettes without the hefty state tobacco taxes.

  The disabled, sickly, & poor are now finding new access to the naturopathic medicine options, including cannabis.  Currently, more than two dozen MDs & DOs are accepting SoonerCare Patients and working with the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority(OMMA). This means that clinic visits may become as low as $3 and the Patient license may be just $20. 
  This doesn't provide marijuana itself, but it does authorize the patients to grow their own therapeutic treatments rather than get govt. subsidized drugs which the taxpayers fund.  This is especially important to pain management patients whose bodies are in constant pain and who have depended on opiates for partial relief. By switching to cannabis meds, these suffering Oklahomans are reporting greater relief and restored mobility. Many are returning to some productivity and social interaction.
  We cross-referenced the latest list of SoonerCare providers with the OMMA list of participating physicians. we found 26 unique names of physicians, which we show in the map and spreadsheet below.

  Oklahoma's medical marijuana options are growing faster than projections.
  The Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority (OMMA) has released their July 1st report of licensure activity. It shows a brisk & continued utilization of cannabis medicine by the patients of Oklahoma.
  At this time last year, the Oklahoma Health Dept. (parent agency of the OMMA)projected close to 78,000 patient licenses by this coming Labor Day weekend.  That projection is wildly inaccurate and the state is on course to more than double those numbers.
  The business climate also continues to improve each week as the ratio of patients to dispensaries maintains a persistent increase to more than 90 patients for every dispensary license.
 Sales & Excise taxes are beginning to reach revenues comparable to tobacco & liquor.
  And all this time, none of the horror stories that were told by the 'Vote No' crowd are becoming reality. Cannabis medicines are proving to be safer (even off-label & casual) than liquor & tobacco.
Below you'll see a full set of spreadsheets detailing the economic indicators for cannabis meds in Oklahoma.

State Liquor tax collections have been about $10 million per month, for the last few years. That's what other media sources are reporting.
 And the upstart medical marijuana industry is exploding with sales increases every month which eclipse the previous month by over 20% more. The June tax collections of excise & sales tax will be between $4 million & $5 million.  By this time next year the number may be double what it is now.
  When you add the patient licensing and Medical Marijuana Business (MMB) licenses, there is already  a huge windfall for the state and municipal governments.
  And this is for a revenue raising measure which the voters overwhelmingly supported, just 1 year ago.  
  Average patient spending is increasing every month, and new patient licensure may be double the current tallies, by this time next year.
  We were expected to have around 70,000 patients licensed by next month. But the current number of licensed patients is double, and growing fast.

  As the calendar turned to June and the OMMA reports continued brisk activity from patient applications, the Oklahoma Tax Commission reports the other half of the economic picture.
With about 130,000 licensed patients in the state, the Sales of cannabis medicines topped $23 million in just the month of May. 
  While the total numbers change radically, and the sales are just as dynamic, the average patient spending is rather consistent.
  When we took the total sales for each month and divided that vast sum by the last reported total number of licenses, we came up with a rather consistent snapshot on individual purchasing.
 Between January 1st & June 1st, the average patient spent about $175 each month in the state's licensed dispensaries. Sometimes that individual monthly tab jumped to $200, but other months it dipped to $150.
  This gives us a fairly reliable snapshot about what a dispensary might expect as the industry continues to grow far beyond all official state projections.
  This last week the OMMA told us that there are about 90 licensed patients for every dispensary license issued.   What we'd really like to know is how many dispensaries are actually reporting significant monthly sales?

We're going to look at the impact of govt. extortion (fees,taxes, mandates, & regulations) on how much you have to pay for this medicine.
 When we decided to allow patients to work with their own physicians to get better care with cannabis medicines, we agreed to a 7% total tax on retail sales, and a 0ne-time $100 patient license. Our commercial producers & distributors agreed to a $2500 license on top of the normal assessments that all local businesses are subject to. That's what we thought we were approving, and we said yes! 
  But the businesses providing these safe and therapeutic medicines are now being ordered to pay much more and jump through far more hoops than reason can rationalize. 

•   The Oklahoma Bureau of Narcotics now is given authority to shut down any Dispensary who hasn't gotten a special license that SQ788 never mentioned. Growers & Processors have similar license fees
• The State Agriculture Dept demands a $15 license.
• The State Health Dept. then charges $450 of would-be processors for the right to present a request for a plan review.
• If The Health Dept approves your business plan, you then pay a 2nd $450 fee to the Dept of Health for permit

  With legal cannabis medicine prices stabilizing in Oklahoma dispensaries, the black market dealers are seeing the 'writing on the wall'.
  In states where patients have to turn to the cartels for cannabis medicine, the prices are commonly over $300 per ounce for medium/high quality raw dried flower buds.
  But the legal dispensaries which have been opening all over the Sooner State, prices and supply have created market conditions which allow licensed patients to safely and legally attain tested cannabis medicine at prices of around $200-300 per ounce.
  At this rate it makes little sense for a patient not to get a medical consultation and pay the $100 for a medical license. It's almost like getting a Sam's Club card. You pay a membership fee up front, but you expect to recoup that expense through lower priced products.  It's as though the state created a "Sam's Club" for naturopathic medicines.
  Last December, the wholesale prices for legal cannabis was over $300 per ounce. Now it is half that.

  On Tuesday, Gov. Kevin Stitt signed a new law into immediate effect. It's Emergency clause requires the OMMA to accept a medical recommendation from any MD or DO physician whose license is in good standing with the State of Oklahoma. The physician no longer is required to be a "board certified specialist" in addition to being a general practitioner.
  The impact is huge for patients who want to remain in the care of their own local clinic. It will allow them to seek the new recommendation at any follow-up, med check, or annual physical exam.  Until now the patients have had to go hunt down a willing physician who does not know anything about their complex health condition. It also puts an additional financial burden on patients who may be battling cancer, mental illness, or other serious conditions. But this law doesn't mean their current physician will be willing to recommend cannabis treatments for them or any of their patients. Some physicians simply won't recommend any treatment that they have not been sufficiently trained to utilize in the care of patients.
  The new law's author, Senator Rob Standridge, (R-Norman) is a pharmacist who initially opposed the SQ788 initiative, but he's seen firsthand the impact that cannabis meds can have for end-of-life care and alleviating severe pain while avoiding opiates. 
  Other major changes to medical marijuana law will go into effect 90 days after the legislature's May adjournment.