The Benefits Of Having A California Medical Marijuana Card

California is the first state to propose cannabis legalization in the US. Even though this proposition failed, California remains the first state to legalize medical marijuana. Medical use of marijuana has been legal since Proposition 215, the Compassionate Use Act, passed in 1996.

Recreational cannabis use also became legal in California in 2016 under Prop 64, and recreational sales have been in full effect since 2018. When states legalize recreational marijuana, people tend to forget the benefits of an MMJ card. This blog will help you to understand the benefits of medical marijuana card in California.

Why should you get a California Medical Marijuana Card?

Under the California Compassionate User Act, the Department of Health allows patients with a need for medical marijuana to register with the state legislature and claim a medical marijuana card. This issuance of a medical marijuana license will enable the government to monitor the use of legalized marijuana.

Medical Reasons

Your primary care physician in California can recommend medical marijuana to help you manage any of these medical conditions:

• Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)
• Anorexia
• Arthritis
• Cachexia (wasting syndrome)
• Cancer
• Chronic pain
• Glaucoma
• Migraine
• Severe nausea
• Persistent muscle spasms (for example, spasms caused by multiple sclerosis)
• Seizures (for example, epileptic seizures)

Your physician can also recommend cannabis to help with chronic or persistent medical symptoms that either:

• Substantially limit your ability to conduct significant life activities,
• Or may cause serious harm to your safety and physical or mental health.

Save Your Savings

In California, medical marijuana users pay less tax than adult non-medical users. Depending on the municipality, recreational marijuana consumers pay retail and excise taxes ranging from 27.5% to 40.75%. Patients who use cannabis for medical purposes pay only the excise tax plus a municipal cannabis company tax for a total tax rate on cannabis that ranges from 15% to 19.75%.
Local taxes on the cannabis industry can vary from 5 to 15%, but some dispensaries will pay this tax on behalf of their clients. So, when buying marijuana, medical marijuana patients can save up to 25% on taxes!

Legal Shield

When California legalized recreational marijuana, many would have thought to discard their cards and go to a dispensary to buy marijuana, just like buying groceries. It may be true partially, but patients under medical care must not neglect the legal protection that comes with a CA MMJ card.
Let us see why the MMJ card provides more shielding from laws compared to adult-use marijuana.

• Possession: Patients can carry up to 8oz of flower or concentrate. Recreational users can only have up to 1oz of dried marijuana flower and 8 g of concentrate. Recreational users can buy and possess only 1 ounce of cannabis without an MMJ card.
• Cultivation: Senate Bill 420 (2003) authorized only registered patients (and their caregivers) to possess up to six mature or 12 immature plants and eight ounces of dried cannabis.
• Age: California allows patients 18 or older a medical marijuana card. However, if you are under 18, you can still reap the benefits with the help of a caregiver. A caregiver is usually a parent or guardian or a person 21 or older authorized by the patient’s parent or guardian. For adult use, you must be 21 or older to buy marijuana.

Excess Access

Patients who use medical cannabis also have more access to goods and dispensaries. Only 161 of the 482 towns in California permit recreational marijuana businesses.

Take a Trip

If you have a valid medical marijuana card from another state, you can still utilize that in California.
Also, if you are a valid MMJ cardholder of California, the purchase of marijuana in the following US states shouldn’t be restricted.

• Arizona,
• Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana,
• Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey,
• Oklahoma,
• Puerto Rico,
• Rhode Island,
• US Virgin Islands, Utah,
• and Washington DC

Quality and Quantity

Even if recreational cannabis use is legal, exclusive medical dispensaries function that are available only to those with a medical marijuana card. Cannabis products, strains, and expert assistance are all available to medical users. There is undoubtedly no scarcity of cannabis extracts.
In contrast to marijuana sold for recreational use, medical marijuana patients also have access to high-potency marijuana. In California, tinctures or lotions are limited to 1000mg of THC, and edible cannabis products are only allowed to include 100mg of THC. However, this strength level is more customizable for registered medical marijuana users, who can double the quantity of THC in medical cannabis lotions to 2000mg.

Closing Statement

The benefits of a medical marijuana card far outweigh the convenience of over-the-counter recreational cannabis use. Consider getting a California MMJ Card today with My MMJ Doctor.