New Jersey Allows Patient Registration for Medical Marijuana

Patients in New Jersey with a doctor’s recommendation to use marijuana to treat certain health problems will be allowed to register for identification cards starting Thursday. The state plans to open its first medical marijuana dispensary in September.

Conditions approved for medical marijuana in the state include glaucoma, multiple sclerosis and terminal cancer, according to the Associated Press. Patients need a recommendation from a physician they have been seeing for at least a year, and who has registered with the state. About 150 doctors have signed up so far, according to a New Jersey Department of Health news release.

Each registration card, which costs $200, will be good for two years. Patients covered by Medicare or Medicaid will pay $20.

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie approved the state’s medical marijuana program in July 2011.