Is Weed Legal In Ohio? Cannabis Legalization Guide (Updated – 2023)

Mainly, weed is legal for only medicinal purposes in Ohio. Therefore, whosoever consumes marijuana for recreational purposes in Ohio will be answerable to the police authorities. As per the law, the illegality of “recreational marijuana usage” stands strong for all age groups.

The state considers illegal Consumption of even below 100 grams of weed as a minor misdemeanor and can charge the culprit up to $150.

Legalization of Medical Marijuana

There is no denial of the fact that Ohio State was relatively slow in legalizing the medical usage of marijuana. In June 2016, Gov. John Kasich signed the HB523 bill represented by state Representative Stephen Huffman that legalized medical marijuana consumption. With this;

• The Board of Pharmacy became responsible for managing marijuana dispensaries licensing as well as regulating registrations for caregivers and minor patients.
• The Department of Commerce took charge of building all the mandatory regulations related to licensing and guidelines for cannabis cultivators, processors, and laboratories.
• Finally, the state told the medical board to make a list of medical conditions that qualify a patient of Ohio to undergo medical marijuana treatment.

Under this Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program (MMCP), only qualified patients with the licensed medical health professional’s approval for medical marijuana consumption were able to have medical marijuana. The valid proof for the doctor’s and state’s approval for marijuana consumption is called an MMJ card.

Although the state passed the Ohio marijuana law in 2016, it became active in the year 2017 after the complete formation of the legislative system to manage the cultivation, possession, experimentation, and recommendation of medical marijuana.

Where Is It Safe To Consume Marijuana In Ohio?

As long as you are consuming medical marijuana in a private place while holding an active doctor’s weed prescription, it is safe and legal. You can consume the flower form of cannabis, but smoking is illegal. You can have flower edibles or have them with some vaporizing equipment. With that being said, still making home concentrate of weed is illegal for even medical marijuana patients.
You have marijuana from any of the following forms:

• Creams
• Edibles
• Flower
• Lotions
• Oils
• Patches
• Tinctures

Wearing transdermal patches or orally consuming tinctures, oils, and edibles is legal only for registered patients.

Possession Limit of Marijuana in Ohio

Although cannabis is legal to consume for registered patients, there is some possession limit for them too. Patients can have THC-infused cannabis in quantities required for their medical condition.

Earlier it was acceptable for patients with MMJ cards to possess a 90-day marijuana dosage in advance. However, in the recent update from April 17, 2020, the 90-day marijuana supply would be divided into two 45-day fill periods. Therefore, from now onward, the patient can purchase 45 days or below dosage at once.
With weed Legalization Ohio, in general:

• Tier-I Doctor’s prescription holder can have no more than 8 ounces of THC that tests at 23% or less.
• Tier-II Doctor’s prescription holder can have less than 5.3 ounces of THC that tests between 23% and 35%.

The THC limit allowance can vary from product to product. For example:

• Edibles, cannabis oil, tincture, capsules, etc., can have up to 9.9 grams of THC.
• Creams, Lotions, and patches can have between 26 to 55 grams of THC.
• The oils that are vaporized can have 53.1 grams of THC.

Medical Marijuana Registry

The state accounts for the entire medical marijuana program named Ohio Medical Marijuana Control Program (MMCP). Once the patient gets confirmation for medical marijuana treatment, the health professional registers the patient with the state. After that, the patient can easily complete their profile, filling in the important details. With this, the patient needs to submit $50 as a registration fee. In no time, the patient will get approval from the state in the form of an Ohio Medical Marijuana Card.

What Medical Conditions Qualify for a Medical Marijuana Card in Ohio?

As described by the state, the Board of Pharmacy came up with the selected medical conditions that can require medical marijuana therapy. Following is the list of Ohio medical marijuana list of conditions 2022, for which the patient can have weed on the doctor’s recommendation:

• Crohn’s Disease
• Epilepsy or another seizure disorder
• Fibromyalgia
• Glaucoma
• Chronic Pain
• Spinal Cord Disease or Injury
• Hepatitis C
• AIDS/HIV
• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
• Parkinson’s Disease
• Positive Status for HIV
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Sickle Cell Anemia
• Alzheimer’s Disease
• Tourette’s Syndrome
• Traumatic Brain Injury
• Cachexia
• Cancer
• Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Pain that is chronic and severe or intractable
• Ulcerative Colitis

Application process

The application process for getting an MMJ card is easy. For that, firstly, you need to get in touch with a licensed health care professional who will evaluate your illness. My MMJ Doctor has a team of licensed medical health professionals. If you are having difficulty finding a healthcare professional, you can visit our site to get started.

• Sign-up and fix an online appointment with a professional
  You can start the process to get an MMJ card by applying on My MMJ Doctor and filling in your personal information and your medical details. Once done, submit the form on the portal.

• Connect with a health professional via audio-video call
  Once you submit the form, a licensed mental health professional will connect with you via an audio-video call and evaluate your illness. If your illness qualifies for medical marijuana treatment, the mental health professional will register your profile with the Ohio Board of Pharmacy.

• Receive your MMJ Card
  After the approval, you need to complete your application for marijuana with MMCP. To continue the process, you have to pay a $50 additional fee to the MMCP to verify and deliver your MMJ card. You can get your MMJ card via email in less than 72 hours if approved.

Caregiver

Minor patients or patients who cannot independently handle their medical marijuana treatment can enroll for an MMJ card with the help of a caregiver.

A caregiver can be the person who takes full responsibility for assisting the patient with their medical marijuana treatment. To qualify as a caregiver in Ohio, the person must be:

• 21 years old or above
• Legal resident of Ohio
• Having legal residency proof like a driver’s license or state identification card.

The Caregiver has to pay a mandatory $50 to the state at the time of registration and list his/her name on the certification. The MMJ certification usually lasts up to a year, so the Caregiver needs to go through the whole process with the patient once the certification expires. The renewal date can also be six months if the patient is terminally ill.
A person can legally act as Caregiver for 2 patients at one time.

Does Ohio accept out-of-state cards?

No, Ohio doesn’t accept cards issued by other states. Therefore, even if you are a legal medical marijuana cardholder of another state, Ohio still won’t consider you a permitted marijuana user.
However, in the future, Ohio’s MMCP can allow reciprocity due to continuous demand by the patients.

The Bottom Line

Therefore, in a nutshell, it is fitting to cite that patients can effectively have marijuana to treat their medical concerns in Ohio. However, the state considers it illegal to consume it for recreational uses. Thus, as an Ohio resident, one must know the general laws governing medical cannabis. Besides, one must get an authentic medical marijuana card to access cannabis from medical dispensaries.