As part of the 2016 presidential election, Floridians voted on Amendment 2, also known as the Florida Medical Marijuana Legalization Initiative, which legalized medicinal use of marijuana for people diagnosed with glaucoma, cancer, HIV, epilepsy, PTSD, ALS, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease. The initiative passed by a margin of 71.3% to 28.7%. Let’s investigate some of the most important current laws that apply to medical-use cannabis across the state of Florida and obtaining a medical marijuana card in Miami.
Caregivers, in the world of medical-use cannabis programs operated by some U.S. states, are people who grow cannabis for patients. They are licensed by the relevant state departments for their location. In Florida, caregivers must be at least 21 years old, have agreed to help a patient with their use of cannabis, and have received a medical cannabis caregiver identification card from the Florida Department of Health. This agency regulates the maximum number of patients each caregiver can help at once, as well as the number of caregivers that patients can have at once.
Legally, through Florida State Bill 186, which was signed into action by Governor Ron DeSantis in March 2019, patients can consume up to 2.5 ounces of raw, dried cannabis flower every five weeks. They can’t be charged with illegal possession as long as they have a medical marijuana card.
As of now, even though they can possess up to 2.5 ounces of raw flower at once, patients in Florida’s medical marijuana program are not authorized to grow cannabis in their homes or on their properties. Only caregivers can grow cannabis for patients. However, patients carrying a medical marijuana card in Miami and other places in Florida can still source cannabis through dispensaries.
