L.A. Council Votes to Shut Down Most Medical-Marijuana Dispensaries

About 80 percent of the 1,000 or so medical-marijuana dispensaries now operating in Los Angeles will be shut down under a measure approved this week by the city council, the New York Times reported Jan. 26.

The ordinance, passed 9-3 and now before Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, would also ban marijuana use at the remaining dispensaries and limit the outlets’ location and hours. The new rules could result in the city having less than 70 legal dispensaries.

L.A. residents are generally supportive of medical marijuana, but the proliferation of unregulated dispensaries in recent years has alarmed many.