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The first medical marijuana dispensary in Greater Cincinnati could soon be opening in Warren County.…
The About Wellness Ohio dispensary in a strip mall at 1525 Genntown Drive in Lebanon is scheduled for a final inspection by state regulators early next week, according to Tejal Desai, who is among a group of pharmacists with a provisional license to operate a dispensary there.
The inspection by the Ohio Board of Pharmacy is the final step toward obtaining a certificate of operation.
If the Lebanon dispensary passes inspection, it could open within a couple of weeks, according to Desai, whose dispensary has already posted store hours and begun training staff.
Each of the 59 dispensaries in the state with provisional licenses must be certified to operate before they can begin selling marijuana buds or cannabis-infused products prescribed to treat one of 21 qualifying conditions under Ohio’s medical marijuana law.
So far, 13 of the 59 dispensaries in the state with provisional licenses have been certified to operate. Not one is in Southwest Ohio. The closest dispensary to Cincinnati is in Columbus.
The Lebanon dispensary could be the first of seven dispensaries within a 60-mile radius of Cincinnati to throw open its doors.
Most of the other local dispensaries are still under construction or don’t anticipate opening for at least another month, based on an informal survey by The Enquirer.
MORE: Cincinnati-area dispensaries in various stages of readiness
MORE:Ohio considers more conditions for medical marijuana treatment
More: Why aren’t Ohioans rushing to buy medical marijuana?
Once the dispensaries open, only registered medical marijuana patients and caregivers and a select group of industry employees and regulators will be allowed on the sales floor.
