On Monday, August 14th, Maryland’s Medical Cannabis Commission announced the approval of three PFC-certified companies to grow and process medical cannabis for the patients of Maryland who have waited so long. Along with ForwardGro, the first company to receive a Stage 2 license in Maryland, Freestate Wellness, Harvest of Maryland, and Green Leaf Medical are currently part of ASA’s Patient Focused Certification program.

Freestate Wellness and Harvest of Maryland also received our inspection preparedness assessment. In their commitment to safe access for patients, this year PFC expanded their services to helping medical cannabis businesses make it through the licensing process. This new service specifically aims to help businesses prepare for licensing.

The Inspection Preparedness Assessment includes:

• Mock inspection with a PFC auditor

• Spot check of SOPs for regulatory compliance

• Review of state inspection checklist

• Overview of thing inspectors may be looking for (including the most common violations that often result in heavy fines and potentially the denial or loss of an operating license)

• Suggested corrective action report

• Post-audit debrief  

Several of the companies that were approved on Monday also have PFC-trained employees. The PFC training program offers a range of certifications in different disciplines (cultivation, laboratory, distribution, manufacturing) intended for everyone from entry level staff to managers and regulators.

So far over 12,000 patients have signed up to become eligible for the Maryland medical cannabis program and 400 medical providers have signed up to make recommendations. Nine companies are now permitted to grow medical cannabis, and another two underwent final inspections on Monday. However, the future of the remaining four companies that received approval of their Stage 1 license is not yet clear. On Aug. 28, the commission will determine whether to grant extensions to those companies.

Newly appointed chairman of the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission, Brian Lopez, said there was still a lot of work to be done to get the remaining growers, as well as processors and dispensaries, up and running across the state. So far only one dispensary has received their stage 2 license in the state, with more than 100 pending approval.

Along with the on-demand access for PFC training, PFC will also be hosting in-person trainings in Maryland, DC, and Philadelphia in the next few weeks to help as many companies as possible gain their Stage 2 licenses in the upcoming months.

Click here for more information on PFC’s inspection preparedness assessment. 

Click here for a free no obligation quote or for more information on how to be a PFC certified company.

Click here to sign up for an online PFC training course.

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