5 Things Everyone Should Know About New Jersey’s Medical Marijuana (Cannabis) Program
Medical Marijuana in New Jersey
While New Jersey has legalized the sale of recreational marijuana from dispensaries within the Garden State, there is still a medicinal cannabis program where patients can receive orders from their doctors or other healthcare professionals for up to three (3) ounces of cannabis, every thirty- (30) days.
These medical cannabis orders are filled at one of the State licensed alternative treatment centers (ATC) across the Garden State. Patients who aren’t able to travel to an ATC, may designate and register a caregiver to make the purchase for them. New Jersey’s medicinal marijuana program now know as the Jake Honig Compassionate Use Medical Cannabis Act was designed to help registered patients under the care of a medical doctor to have safe access to cannabis-based medicine from regulated facilities.
Those in the program must remain compliant and that compliance will prevent health risks and legal consequences. Patients in the program should always do the following:
- Carry proper identification, including their medical marijuana card with them at all times.
- Keep medical cannabis in its original labeled package.
- Use medicinal cannabis only at home and transport it only when necessary.
- Do not share with anyone, as medicinal cannabis, unlike recreational cannabis is intended solely for consumption by the registered patient.
- Finally, never transport medicinal cannabis across State lines, as New Jersey’s medical cannabis laws are unique to the State and do apply in other jurisdictions.
New Jersey’s Recreational Marijuana Program
New Jersey, like many states (but NOT Pennsylvania) has legalized the still Scheduled I drug Marijuana (Cannabis). The State’s Cannabis Regulatory Enforcement Assistance and Marketplace Modernization Act (CREAMM), permits the legal sale and use of cannabis and cannabis products for residents and non-residents.
These are the top questions regarding the new law in New Jersey.
Who can purchase it?
Answer: Anyone in New Jersey can purchase Marijuana, this includes residents and visitors twenty-one (21) years of age or older.
Where can a person purchase Marijuana?
Answer: A person can purchase at any New Jersey licensed cannabis dispensary. The State has a website, which lists all of the licensed dispensaries in the Garden State. Our criminal defense law firm services all of these counties, which include, Camden, Atlantic, Gloucester, Burlington and Cumberland County.
What forms of Marijuana can a person purchase from a licensed dispensary?
Answer: Each dispensary is permitted to sell up to 1oz. of cannabis or the equivalent of 1 oz. of the drug. Here are the most common transactions:
- 1oz of dried flower
- 5 grams of concentrate or concentrated solution-these include resins, oils, or other forms of liquid
- 1000 milligrams of ingestible (ten 100 milligram packets)-the most common form are gummies
- The following combinations are often very common – half ounce of dried flower, plus 2.5 oz of concentrate of five (5) packages of gummies and a half ounce of dried flower.
What are the legal categories of Marijuana?
- Dried flower
- Concentrated oils
- Resin
- Vape formulas
- Tinctures
- Topicals
- Syringes
- Lozenges
- Soft chews
Dispensaries are not permitted to sell edibles like cookies or brownies, but obviously people can make their own with the product. New Jersey allows anyone over the age of twenty-one (21) years of age or older to be in possession of 1 oz. of cannabis and cannabis products.
What is the cost of Marijuana in New Jersey?
Answer: Prices will vary by location and product. All transactions are subject to New Jersey’s sales tax (6.625%), plus social equity excise fee.
Where can a person use Marijuana in New Jersey?
Answer: A person may smoke in private places; however, a landlord may prohibit cannabis on their property.
Can I cross state lines with Marijuana purchased from New Jersey?
Answer: No. It is Illegal to transport cannabis across State lines.
Can I give a friend Marijuana as a gift?
Answer: Yes. A person may gift up to 1 oz. of cannabis to another who is twenty-one (21) years of age or older. A person, however, may not sell cannabis to another or accept any payment in exchange for cannabis in New Jersey.
Is it illegal to drive while high on cannabis?
Answer: It is illegal to drive while under the influence of Marijuana. The laws regarding driving while impaired or intoxicated apply when a person is under the influence of cannabis.
Please remember that Pennsylvania and New Jersey have very different laws regarding Marijuana. In the Pennsylvania, you can only obtain Medical Marijuana proscribed from a doctor. The Commonwealth does not permit recreational use of Marijuana.
Contact Our Marijuana Criminal Defense Lawyers in PA & NJ
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