Getting Medical Marijuana in Pennsylvania: A comprehensive guide.
By: Cameron Avrigean | March 16, 2020
The step by step guide to getting medical marijuana in Pennsylvania.
We’ll walk you through the entire process step-by-step, from registering for PA Medical Marijuana to getting your card.
On April 6th, 2016, Governor Tom Wolf signed the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana act into action. Two years later, on February 12th, 2018 the first dispensaries opened giving patients direct access to Medical Marijuana in Pennsylvania for the first time. The program is expanding to help more and more people who can’t adequately get relief for their condition
Pennsylvania has put together a simple and straightforward process designed to get you approved for your medical marijuana card and able to purchase product from any dispensary statewide. We’ll walk you through that process step-by-step, getting you one step closer to relief for your condition.
The four steps to getting medical marijuana in Pennsylvania
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Step 1. Get registered for the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Program
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Step 2. Get certified by a state-approved physician
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Step 3. Get your Medical Marijuana card.
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Step 4. Go to a dispensary and get your medical marijuana.
Step 1 – Get registered for the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Program
In order to begin the process, you need to register as an adult patient in the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Registry. You will need to provide basic contact information here including your full legal name, address, phone number and email address. In order to be eligible for medical marijuana in Pennsylvania, you will also need a valid Pennsylvania drivers license or ID card.
Step 2 - Get certified by a state-approved physician
Finding a physician
There are over 800 state-approved physicians in Pennsylvania. If you are not currently seeing one, make an appointment with any of the approved physicians to begin the process.
The Pennsylvania department of health has released a comprehensive PDF containing all approved physicians.
We put together a comprehensive physician finder in REMY so you don’t have to sort through this list if you don’t want to – just get registered here.
Qualifying Conditions in Pennsylvania
In order to be eligible for medical marijuana in Pennsylvania, you need to be diagnosed and begin treatment for one of the following eligible conditions:
Medical Marijuana Caregivers
If you cannot easily access or utilize medical marijuana, Pennsylvania has also given medical marijuana patients the option of designating a caregiver. Pennsylvania allows caregivers to be “a spouse, a parent, or even a friend.” Caregivers must be 18 years or older and registered for the medical marijuana program. The state has put together additional resources on registering to be a caregiver here.
Step 3 - Get your Pennsylvania medical marijuana card
After working with your physician to get certified to use Medical Marijuana for your approved condition, you have to go back to the MMJ registry and file the application for your medical marijuana card.
The fee for a card is $50 but if you are eligible for other government programs like Medicaid, according to the state you may be eligible for a fee reduction.
Renew your medical marijuana registration
Registration is good for one year, the state will automatically send you a reminder 60 days before you card and registration expire.
How to renew
Renewing your card is as simple as registering was, simply go to the Pennsylvania Medical Marijuana Registry website and go through the process to renew. You will need to visit an approved physician to get re-certified.
Step 4 - Getting medical marijuana
With your card, you can purchase medical marijuana from any dispensary within the state. Dispensaries are currently clustered around major metropolitan areas but there is a dispensary within an hour or two driving distance most places in Pennsylvania.
The state has put together a map with all of the active and planned dispensaries, check it out here:
This map is actively maintained and contains all dispensaries operating in the state of Pennsylvania.
Cameron Avrigean
Cameron Avrigean is a Marketing Coordinator at Remedy Metrics. Cameron is a passionate writer and social media fanatic. He works with the content team to create engaging blogs, videos, and social posts. Cameron holds a B.S. in Business Management from Point Park University. When not writing about the latest in medical marijuana, he’s normally racing his bike or baking sourdough bread.