Employees at canna-businesses will be included with the first wave of health-care providers for receiving Maryland’s Covid-19 vaccine. The Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission is working with the State Department of Health to ensure that medical marijuana patients do not have to be afraid that the pandemic will affect their abilities to have access to their medication.
Cannabis is Essential
The Commission has released several bulletins since the beginning of the pandemic, including orders that have deemed cannabis workers as ‘essential workers’, requiring them to wear masks and enforce social distancing, and now providing for their much-needed vaccinations to reduce the risk for themselves and the people around them.
According to the Baltimore Business Journal, the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission alerted the more than 130 licensed cannabis companies across all sectors that their employees will be eligible for Phase 1A of the state’s tiered vaccine distribution plan.
Medical Marijuana Is Medicine
The Maryland State Health Department issued directives stating that registered employees at medical cannabis dispensaries, labs, cultivation sites and processing sites are eligible as ‘registered healthcare providers.’ The fact that the state is willing to go beyond the obvious need for dispensaries to have access to the vaccine shows a comprehensive understanding of the importance of the medical marijuana programs.
Maryland is one of more than 20 states who have deemed their cannabis businesses as essential during the pandemic. Some of those states have included their recreational cannabis businesses as essential workers as well.
A representative of SunMed Growers told the Baltimore Business Journal that employees at the Cecil County-based company have begun signing up for the vaccine, with some set to receive their first dose by week’s end.
Additional Resources:
At The Weed Blog, we strive to produce the latest online news resources regarding marijuana. We also review various strains of cannabis or other edible counterparts. We are committed to helping you find valuable information about marijuana on our website. With marijuana laws constantly changing, learn from us what you can do to promote activism in your area. Otherwise, consider these other top-tier articles regarding cannabis:
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