In the week since the state named three nonprofits to run six first-of-their-kind medical marijuana dispensaries in Maine, Kathy Bubar has heard the myths and the gripes, and she has stressed that, no, the state doesn’t intend to reconsider last Friday’s announcement.

“(It’s been) lots of rumor-dispelling and (questions such as) why did we pick the people we picked and why didn’t we pick other people and are we going to change our minds,” said Bubar, director of interagency coordination at the Department of Health and Human Services.

“Obviously, with 27 applications and only eight dispensaries to be (selected,) there were going to be a lot of unhappy people,” she said. “And there were.”

Bubar was one member of the four-person panel who pored over and scored applications. DHHS’s Division of Licensing and Regulatory Services chose Timothy Smale of Remedy Compassion Center in Wilton to operate one dispensary in Western Maine, Leo Trudel of Safe Alternatives of Fort Kent to operate one in Northern Maine and Rebecca DeKeuster of Northeast Patients Group to operate four in Central Maine.

Two more dispensaries remain unnamed because no applicant scored high enough.

The Sun Journal asked Bubar to answer questions and complaints still hanging out there, as well as where the state goes from here.

One gripe: Dispensaries went to operators from California or with strong out-of-state ties.

Applicants and board members had to be Maine residents when they submitted, she said, but there was no stipulating how long they had to be Maine residents.

“So, can they come here a week earlier? Sure,” Bubar said.

Outside links, or funds, weren’t a consideration, she said. Applications were judged on their merit. Some operators did benefit from past experience working in California.

“I think it’s important for people to remember that your basic Bangor Savings Bank isn’t always excited about lending money to an outfit that’s growing marijuana,” Bubar said. “I don’t believe that any of the dispensary applications that we saw stated that they were getting conventional start-up financing.”

Did operators have to have a property secured when they applied?

Originally, yes, Bubar said, but circumstances changed as more communities enacted moratoriums. The new requirement: Give a best idea and its features and let DHHS know when a deal is inked. Each operator is limited to one dispensary site per district.

If the Smales don’t secure the proposed building in Wilton, are they limited to that town?

No. “They will only be limited to a location that is equally as convenient to their client base. They are working to find a new location and are communicating with us about their plans and progress.” (The Smales’ District 3 covers Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties.)

How will Maine insurance companies cover medicinal marijuana? What about MaineCare?

“There is no requirement because marijuana continues to be a Schedule 1 drug,” she said. “Traditional insurance companies will not cover it, nor will MaineCare be required to cover (it). It really will be out-of-pocket for people.”

What’s more, Bubar said, Maine doctors won’t be prescribing marijuana.

“Doctors certify that their patient has one of the listed debilitating conditions and in the opinion of this physician, medical marijuana may help alleviate their symptoms,” she said. “That’s all they can do. It’s not a prescription.”

With that note, patients apply to the state to either grow their own, hire a caregiver or buy from a dispensary.

Each of the three nonprofits approved to run the six dispensaries plans to offer a discount program for people who can’t afford their medical marijuana, Bubar said.

According to the applications, the Wilton dispensary expects to charge $400 an ounce the first year; Fort Kent, $250. Can patients shop around?

Absolutely, Bubar said, though they must keep the state posted on which dispensary they’re using.

“We are not controlling the price at all,” Bubar said. “The consideration the dispensaries have voiced around price is simply looking at the black-market price.”

Charge too much and they might not get people in the door. Charge too little and they risk having product resold on the street, she said.

Having product mail-ordered isn’t an option. Patients either have to go to the dispensary or it has to deliver to them, she said.

For the average patient, how long will an ounce of marijuana last?

That’s impossible to tell, Bubar said, since the needs of each patient will vary a great deal. “Patients are allowed to purchase 2.5 ounces every two weeks, according to the statute.”

What happens with the two dispensaries that weren’t selected last week?

Would-be operators have until Aug. 20 to apply; a decision is due Aug. 31.

“I think we will have a number of applications from people both who applied previously for those districts and people who perhaps applied for other districts and didn’t get those,” Bubar said. “Maybe we’ll have some people who didn’t try the first time around who now know what the expectations are and will look at the successful applications and say, ‘Hm, I could do that.’”

People who applied and weren’t successful will get $14,000 of the $15,000 application fee returned.

What’s next for the state after that?

Operators who plan to run kitchens must obtain commercial food licenses. Other details remain, such as board members’ background checks.

Bubar said she believes the dispensaries may open, with a quickly grown crop ready to dispense, between late August and November. State inspectors will be allowed in any time, with no notice.

“We’ll get to be very nosy about what they’re doing,” Bubar said. “There is a lot of concern in the community about the whole issue, so we obviously will need to make sure that people are running a very good, very transparent operation.”

kskelton@sunjournal.com

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