Dear Board of Pharmacy and Ohio Law Makers

We are living in challenging  times and I think you should strongly reconsider allowing delivery of Ohio Medical Marijuana. I would like to outline some of core reasons to consider this.

1.      Patient Access

Access is extremely limited for many Ohio Medical Marijuana patients.

This would include physically disabled

Veterans

Deaf Patients

Blind Patients

Terminally ill

Patients with Language barriers

Patients with transportation issues

You can not assume everyone is going to have caregiver they trust to pick up their medication

2.      Covid19

Many patients are afraid of getting the Covid19 at Dispensaries this group of people continue to be a high-risk group.

Some people wear masks at dispensaries some do not leaving that chance for infection.

Older patients can’t wait in long lines or even their cars in hot weather not everyone has working AC in their cars. Some people don’t even have good heat in their cars in the winter.

Less patients at Dispensaries while keeping the revenue from delivery would help lower the risk of the spread of the Covid19 virus

 

Here is 1 suggestion of how Ohio Should setup the delivery of Medical Marijuana.

1. Dispensary Requirements

Deliveries can be made within the same county the dispensary is located .

Actual delivery area can be fine tuned by the dispensaries if the dispensary is really close to 2 counties exceptions could be made to reach more patients .

All orders must be handled online and paid for upfront by the patient using some form of secure online payment .

Patients have to pay each dispensary a delivery fee that the dispensary sets within a reasonable amount based on cost of labor  and logistics . Similar to what Uber Eats does .

Patients can only make one order per day and a max of 3 orders in one week from any dispensary .

All orders must be delivered before sun down . 

All orders must be verified by at least 2 employees   

Dispensaries need a seperate phone number to handle any issues related to delivery orders . 

A separate call center to handle delivery and online orders would be useful it was something all the dispensaries could use . This would help out with high call volumes at the dispensaries.    

If a product is missing or damaged upon delivery the patient can send it back for a refund or if something is missing the dispensary can issue a electronic refund or offer store credit towards another delivery order only . 

If a patient is not home to receive their delivery they can still be charged a fee for the trip.

It is the dispensaries responsibility to verify the patient is home for delivery .

This can be via text alert or phone call . 

Patients must be giver a delivery window of when to expect the delivery and this might not always be the same day depending on volume and resources.

Patients orders must be filled within 48 hours or the patient should a get refund of all charges .  

If the patient misses delivery due to medical emergency or a doctors appointment the fee can be waived on a case by case basis . 

2. Delivery Driver Requirements

 Must have valid ohio Driver License and clean driving record

 Must be a dispensary employee who has already passed a background check.

 He or she must be in good health and has passed a covid19 test once a 1 week .

 All drivers must wear mask and gloves when making deliveries .

 Drivers must make deliveries in state approved secured delivery vehicles with live surveillance cameras  .

 Drivers Must not carry any cash even personal money .

Drivers must verify the patient or caregivers identity by seeing their medical marijuana card and state issued id . A hand scanner would be useful .

Drivers must collect a signature from the person receiving the delivery

Patients have a right to verify the order is correct before the driver leaves .

Drivers must also photograph the package on the patient porch with a company issued cell phone for audit and record keeping purposes. These pictures should be held no longer than one year . 

3. Patients Responsibility Regarding Delivery 

Make sure your order is correct before submitting order

Make sure you stay in contact with the dispensary you ordered from .

Check your days before you place your order .

Alert dispensary by calling if you cant be home during the delivery window.

Make sure you have you medical card and state id when the driver arrives . 

Check your order before the driver leaves .

Treat your driver with respect .

Dont order from multiple dispensaries in one day this would count against your 3 orders per week . 

If you order is wrong dont blame driver contact the dispensary for a resolution .

IF you refuse a order for a reason other than missing or damaged products you could still be charged a delivery fee.

If you miss your delivery window for a non medical reason you could still be charged a delivery fee .  

I am sure there is more to add and I will keep updating this . I know there might be a typo but I have a brain injury so there is alway typos lol 

Together we can make a positive change in our program look how far we have come in one year . Lets keep going to make the program even better .