Virginia delays medical license decision for Shenandoah region

The Virginia Cannabis Control Authority postponed its decision to award a medical cannabis license for a region encompassing the Shenandoah Valley and parts of central Virginia.

The CCA was expected to name a licensee from among 40 applicants at its June 26 meeting. However, Shawn Casey, deputy chief of CCA’s regulatory affairs office, said staff need more time to review the 16,000 pages of application materials, according to Virginia Business.

“Given the great interest in the application process, as shown by the number of applications … we know the result will be highly scrutinized,” Casey said Wednesday. “We wanted to make sure that we’re taking the time necessary to ensure the integrity and comprehensiveness of the recommendation that gets to the board and we’ll have an updated timeline whenever we can.”

The region, which is classified as Health Service Area 1, has never been served by a dispensary after the original permit holder, Pharmacann Virginia, had its license revoked in 2020 for failing to meet construction deadlines, according to the outlet. Virginia is divided into five regions for the purposes of licensure.

Greg Habeeb, president of Gentry Locke Consulting and a lobbyist for the Virginia Cannabis Association, speculated that the delay might be due to missing information in some applications or the volume of work involved.

The CCA has not provided a new timeline for the decision. The chosen applicant will join four existing pharmaceutical processors in Virginia, which are all owned by out-of-state companies.

The delay comes amid broader cannabis policy challenges in Virginia. The state legalized possession and use in 2021, but it still lacks a framework for recreational sales after Gov. Glenn Youngkin vetoed implementation legislation.

Democratic lawmakers now project legal recreational sales won’t begin until 2027 at the earliest, which is after the next gubernatorial election in 2025.