Get an Ohio Medical Marijuana Card

Congrats on getting your medical certification! You’re almost there, but there are a few more steps to complete to get your Ohio medical marijuana card. Let’s dive in!

• Before You Start: What You’ll Need
  • An activation email from the MMCP
• Mail Time: The patient is approved, and the physician submits the patient and/or caregiver information into the state registry. Then, they receive an email from the state within three business days.
• Complete the Registration: Patients must activate their Ohio Medical Marijuana Registry account and card using the link provided in their email from the state.
• The medical marijuana patient can then download their medical card and legally purchase cannabis from a licensed dispensary.

It’s easy to renew your Ohio medical marijuana card with Leafwell. You’ll go through most of the same steps as when you apply for medical marijuana treatment for the first time in Ohio. The only difference is that you won’t get an email prompt from the state since you already have an account in their system. We have a complete step-by-step guide on our Ohio renewal page, where you can also start the process of renewing your card.

Navigating the legal landscape of medical marijuana can be a bit tricky, but we’re here to break it down for you. Here are some key points you should be aware of if you’re a medical cannabis patient in Ohio:

Recreational Use Legal: Recreational possession, use, and cultivation of cannabis are legal, but adult-use sales have not begun yet (but are expected to begin sometime in 2024).

Currently, having a medical marijuana card is still the only way to legally purchase cannabis products in the state.

Possession Limits: Adults are allowed to possess up to 2.5 ounces of cannabis and 15 grams of marijuana concentrates.

Cultivation is Allowed: Marijuana cultivation is legal. Adults 21 and older can grow up to six plants (with a maximum of 12 plants per household).

Smoking Prohibited: Smoking cannabis flower is illegal; however, vaping is allowed.

No Driving Under the Influence: It’s illegal to drive while under the influence of marijuana or to have an open container of marijuana in a vehicle while on the road or in a public place.

If you’re looking to become a caregiver for a medical marijuana patient in Ohio, there are some important rules and steps you’ll need to follow.

Picking Up for Patients

Good news! As a caregiver, you can pick up medical marijuana from a dispensary on behalf of a patient. Handy, right?

Caregiver Limitations

An individual may not serve as a Personal Caregiver for more than five patients at once. If the patient is a minor, having a caregiver is a must.

Registration Process

Caregivers must be added to the patient’s profile to get their own medical marijuana caregiver card. The recommending physician with whom the patient or prospective patient has a bona fide physician-patient relationship, or the physicians delegate, shall submit the caregiver registration.

Eligibility Criteria

To qualify, you must:

1. Be at least 21.
2. Live in Ohio and have proof of residency.
3. Have an Ohio driver’s license or a state-issued ID card with your current address.
4. Caregivers can also be a patient. This is no longer a disqualifying condition. However, a registered patient cannot be a caregiver and also receive caregiver services. Information on how to certify a caregiver as a patient can be found here.
5. A patient’s recommending physician shall not serve as the patient’s caregiver.
6. A background check is required. The state can take up to 7 business days to complete the caregiver background check.
7. A patient shall designate no more than two caregivers. The MMCP shall register no more than two caregivers for each patient.

Timing

Once the background check is complete, you’ll receive an email notification from the state and your card will be available to download immediately.

Ohio does not recognize other states’ medical marijuana cards.

However, Ohio state law requires that the Ohio MMCP develop a medical marijuana reciprocity process with states to admit out-of-state medical cards.

That said, other states accept or recognize out-of-state medical marijuana cards:

• Arizona
• Arkansas *
• Hawaii *
• Louisiana
• Maine
• Michigan (at the dispensary’s discretion)
• Nevada
• New Hampshire
• New Jersey *
• New Mexico
• Oklahoma *
• Puerto Rico
• Rhode Island
• U.S. Virgin Islands *
• Utah * (up to two 21-day periods in a calendar year)
• Washington, D.C.

*Visitors must complete a visiting patient application with the state program.

A certified physician may recommend treatment with medical marijuana only after obtaining the consent of a parent or another person responsible for providing consent to treatment. Minors are also required to have an adult caregiver.

Both the patient and the patient’s caregiver will need an official, unexpired ID to present to the recommending physician before they can enter the individuals into the Patient & Caregiver registry.

Valid forms of ID: a state driver’s license; a US Passport; an identification card issued by the Ohio Bureau of Motor vehicles. These BMV cards can be issued to minors and adults who do not have a driver’s license.