Medical Marijuana Dispensary Locations

 Jackson County residents approved to purchase medical cannabis will have to travel to neighboring counties, as no dispensary licenses have been awarded locally under Kentucky's new medical cannabis program. 

Medical cannabis became legal in the Commonwealth beginning Jan. 1, 2025. 

Governor Andy Beshear signed Senate Bill 47 into law on March 31, 2023, authorizing the use of medical cannabis in Kentucky. The Office of Medical Cannabis filed regulations and opened its application process for cannabis business licenses on April 18, 2024. Patients must apply for a medical cannabis card at kymedcan.ky.gov to legally purchase the product. Recreational cannabis use remains illegal in the state. 

Adding to the concerns, Kentucky Auditor Allison Ball announced in April that her office has launched a formal investigation into the Office of Medical Cannabis and its handling of the dispensary licensing process. 

"My office has continued to receive complaints about how the Office of Medical Cannabis administered the lottery process for awarding medical cannabis business licenses," Ball said in a statement. "Kentuckians should have confidence that state offices operate with transparency and integrity, and my office is committed to ensuring those standards." 

As part of the licensing process, businesses were required to pay a $5,000 application fee and were then entered into a lottery for selection. However, data shows that roughly 90% of lottery winners are from out of state, with only eight LLCs linked to Kentucky residents -- raising concerns about fairness and local representation. 

In March, Gov. Beshear defended the process, saying, "We operated the system as it was sent to work. Did certain owners look like they worked with potential operators? Yes, but in the end, that appears to be legal in the way that it was set up." 

He also emphasized the transparency of the selection. "We did it in public. Every single rule was put out there for regulation; the public got to comment on it. The legislature got to ask questions, and the lottery itself was done on TV." 

Despite those assurances, Auditor Ball said her office is proceeding with a full review, beginning with an examination of how licenses were applied for and awarded. 

While no dispensary has yet opened in Kentucky, the nearest licensed locations for Jackson County residents are: 
 ERH KY LLC, 140 Faith Assembly Church Road, London (Laurel County) 
 No. 1 Boundary LLC, 37 Southpark Center Drive, Suite 1, Corbin (Whitley County) 
 Garry Kort, 1601 Foxhaven Dr, Richmond, KY 40475 (Madison County) 
 Reed KY Dispensary, 2377 North KY 15, Hazard (Perry County) 

State-licensed dispensaries have the option to modify their operating addresses. A full list of approved facilities can be found at kymedcan.ky.gov.