Kentucky’s governor is continuing to tout the buildout of the state’s medical marijuana program following the opening of the 26th operational dispensary last week.
“My administration worked hard to bring medical cannabis to Kentucky, and our hard work paid off,” Gov. Andy Beshear (D) said on Wednesday, noting that he signed legislation to legalize medical marijuana in 2023 that took effect last year.
“I’m proud to say that just a year and a half later, Team Kentucky is over halfway finished with building out this program,” the governor said. “We now have 46 of 80 approved businesses up and operating. It includes 13 cultivators, two safety compliance facilities, five processors and those 26 dispensaries.”
“We moved quickly to bring relief to Kentuckians, and we’ve always put the patient first,” Beshear said, noting what he called “amazing progress” in providing legal access to medical cannabis.
Last week, Beshear separately celebrated the fact that medical marijuana dispensaries are now open across all 11 licensing regions of the state following the opening of Sunnyside Dispensary in Floyd County.
“Now every qualifying Kentuckian has access to safe, non-addictive relief close to home,” the governor said on Wednesday.
“We’ve hit milestone after milestone, and access continues to expand,” he said.
According to data Beshear cited at his latest press conference, more than 29,000 Kentuckians have now been approved for medical marijuana cards, and more than 500 medical practitioners are registered to recommend cannabis.
“Folks suffering from serious conditions like PTSD, cancer, multiple sclerosis and more now have a safe alternative that can deliver relief,” he said.
Beshear said in August that the state’s efforts to get medical cannabis dispensaries open was approaching the “halfway mark” to becoming “fully operational.”
He also recently said that hemp is “important” to Kentucky, urging voters not to reelect any members of Congress who are seeking to ban it.
Beshear signed an executive order in June to broaden the list of health conditions that make patients eligible to legally obtain medical cannabis.
But days later, House Majority Whip Jason Nemes (R) asked Attorney General Russell Coleman (R) to ensure that state agencies “not cooperate” with the governor’s marijuana directive, which he called “unlawful.”
“Any organization, any licensee, that participates in this unlawful expansion should be prosecuted,” Nemes said during a legislative committee hearing. “This is not the way forward.”
The governor pushed back, however, saying that the GOP lawmaker exhibited a “complete lack of humanity.”
“It’s helping a lot of people, and I was really surprised to see an attack from one lawmaker who called on the attorney general to prosecute people dying of a terminal illness for securing medical cannabis,” Beshear said. “I mean, that’s a complete lack of humanity. It is really low. I mean, an individual with ALS, you want to prosecute? That is certainly not leadership, and even for that individual, is a new record low.”
After the legislature declined to take him up on a suggestion to expand the qualifying condition list this session, the governor used his authority to make it so patients with 15 additional health disorders—including Parkinson’s disease, HIV/AIDS, sickle cell anemia, fibromyalgia, arthritis and glaucoma—can also be certified for medical marijuana access.
Beshear also rescinded an earlier executive order he issued in 2022 through which he offered to provide pardons for any patients who got into trouble for possessing medical cannabis that they purchased at a legal dispensary in a neighboring state.
The more recent executive order on qualifying conditions is a follow up to a medical marijuana legalization law Beshear signed in 2023. The state’s first medical cannabis dispensary opened in December of last year.
The governor in February announced that cannabis gummies are available for purchase in the state’s licensed dispensaries.
Beshear in January said he’s “not satisfied” with the time it’s taken to launch the state’s medical marijuana program—but that he anticipates the pace of patient access would “pick up significantly” in 2026.
In recognition of the delayed implementation, he signed an executive order to waive renewal fees for patients who get their cards so that they don’t get charged again before retailers open.
Beshear separately announced last year that the state had launched a new online directory that lets people see where medical cannabis dispensaries will be opening near them.
He emphasized that the state has been working to deliver access to patients “at the earliest possible date,” and that involved expediting the licensing process. Last year, the governor also ceremonially awarded the commonwealth’s first medical marijuana cards.
During the November 2024 election, Kentucky also saw more than 100 cities and counties approve local ordinances to allow medical cannabis businesses in their jurisdictions. The governor said the election results demonstrate that “the jury is no longer out” on the issue that is clearly supported by voters across partisan and geographical lines.
Meanwhile, legislature’s Interim Joint Committee on Health Services held a hearing in July on a proposal to allow terminally ill patients to use medical marijuana in hospitals.
Photo courtesy of Mike Latimer.
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