“It’s a very tense situation”: Maryland dispensaries off to bumpy start with shortages, closures
Marylands medical marijuana dispensaries finally opened this past week after years of delay, but many are running out of the drug as limited supply is struggling to keep up with high demand.
Five of seven licensed dispensaries that started selling cannabis products in recent days say theyve either completely or almost run out of flower the raw part of the marijuana plant that is smoked or vaporized. The other two are limiting sales to a small group of preregistered patients.
Kannavis in Frederick County sold out of flower on its opening day Saturday, but still has pre-filled cartridges that can be attached to vaporizing pens. Like other dispensaries, Kannavis is banking on additional marijuana shipments before this weekend, and is keeping its patients updated on its Facebook page, website and email list.
Its all in a flux. We dont have confirmation of anything at this point and thats just the nature of the rollout of this industry, said owner Jane Klink. I wish we had something carved out in stone.
Allegany Medical Marijuana Dispensary, one of the first two shops to open Friday, expects to run out of its remaining products Wednesday after serving about 150 patients. Most high-demand products including tinctures and creams have yet to arrive.
Its a very tense situation, said general manager Mark Van Tyne. Its a learning curve, and theres a lot of growing pains going on right now.
In Montgomery County, two dispensaries ran out of flower early this week and are awaiting the next shipments. Potomac Holistics in Rockville, which made its first sales Friday evening, closed temporarily Monday and then reopened Tuesday. One of the stores owners, Bill Askinazi, said Wednesday morning that the store was stocked with vape pens and tablets and that about 500 patients have come through since the opening.
Nothing is perfect in a new industry, especially when its coordinated statewide, Askinazi said.
Rise Bethesda has stayed open since its first sale Saturday morning, said Andy Grossman, a partner at the stores Illinois-based parent company, Green Thumb Industries. Grossman said the store ran out of flower Tuesday but had received a delivery of Rhythm vape cartridges and was also stocked with Dixie tablets and elixirs.
Grossman said that Montgomerys third dispensary, Rise Silver Spring, still did not have an opening date because of a product shortage.
Southern Maryland Relief dispensary in Mechanicsville ran out of its higher-end and midrange flower after just four hours of sales Sunday and Monday, leaving it with just its lower-end strains and a shipment of vaporizing pens from Chesapeake Alternatives, a licensed processor.
Patients are just buying as much of it as they can so they dont run out, said Charlie Mattingly, who manages Southern Maryland Relief.
