FAQs - Maine Medical Marijuana Card

The individual should be a resident of Maine who is at least 18 years old (or minor under the care of his/her parent/legal guardian) suffering from a medical condition which may be helped by the use of cannabis according to a licensed medical professional in Maine (doctor, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner).

There is no defined list of medical conditions in Maine – any condition approved by a licensed health-care provider is suitable for use of cannabis. Typical conditions include chronic pain, PTSD, anxiety, cancer, epilepsy, MS, Crohn’s disease, HIV/AIDS, glaucoma, insomnia, and Parkinson’s disease.

Yes, both can apply. After Maine took away the list of conditions in 2015, all licensed health professionals can recommend a patient for any condition they feel would be helped by medical marijuana use.

There is no state registration fee in Maine for patients. There is only a physician evaluation fee, usually between $75-$199. The most inexpensive option is usually telemedicine visits. Fees for caregiver registration are different – non-family caregivers who want to grow marijuana for their patients have to pay $240 per year and a background check fee of $31 per patient.

Absolutely. In Maine, telehealth is accepted for performing medical cannabis assessments by qualified health care practitioners, and hence making the entire assessment process doable from home. After being electronically certified, you can immediately use the certificate at the licensed dispensing locations without having to produce a physical card.

The Maine program is mostly certification-based. The majority of telehealth service providers send you the electronic certificate within minutes to 24 hours from the moment of your certification. If you decide to get the optional physical ID state card, this will take a few extra days to process.

Maine medical cannabis cards/certificates are issued for one year. They need to be renewed annually by scheduling an appointment with a Maine-licensed doctor for recertification. After receiving the new certification, your electronic card will be delivered directly to you and can be used at dispensaries quickly.

Yes. Maine caregivers are permitted to grow up to 30 plants in their mature stage and 60 plants in the immature stage, and care for up to five people. Caregivers who are not related to the patient must be registered, undergo a criminal background check, and receive permission from local municipalities.

Yes. Maine has one of the largest reciprocity laws in the nation. Patients visiting from states such as Alaska, Arizona, California, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington D.C., and others can purchase medical cannabis using their valid card along with their photo identification issued by the government.

Yes, through reciprocity. Out-of-state residents with a valid card for medical cannabis from a state that allows reciprocity can purchase their medical cannabis from licensed dispensaries and retail stores run by caregivers in Maine. Non-residents aged 21 and above can also buy recreational cannabis from the adult-use dispensaries in Maine without holding any card.

Registered patients can have 2.5 ounces of cannabis in their possession at any point in time – which is the same limit as recreational users – but they can cultivate up to 8 pounds of their own medical cannabis at home. The limit for possessing marijuana concentrate is 5 grams. This is far more liberal than the limit allowed to recreational users.

Yes. Patients are allowed to grow up to 6 mature plants, 12 immature plants, and an unlimited number of seedlings in their private residence. The allowance for cultivation in case of recreational use is twice smaller, and such individuals can grow up to 3 mature plants. All cultivation should be performed in a secure, enclosed area, and patients may possess all the cannabis they produce themselves.

Yes – patients have to pay just the 5.5% general state sales tax (8% for edibles) on their purchase, while recreational buyers need to pay the 10% excise tax plus the state sales tax. Such a difference is significant for frequent buyers, especially those who purchase large amounts of the product regularly.

Patients are able to visit any of the 82 licensed medical dispensaries in Maine. Please note that the Maine law does not allow selling medical and recreational marijuana in one place, so medical dispensaries are different from recreational ones.

Make an appointment for your recertification with a licensed healthcare practitioner in Maine before the time limit of your card expires to ensure that you don’t miss out on anything during the gap period. Once you get your new electronic certification, you can start making purchases from the dispensaries again right away. If you do it afterward, you will be considered a recreational customer and will pay the higher taxes on adult-use marijuana.

Yes, this is possible because medical dispensaries sell products of higher potency and greater variety than recreational dispensaries do, including specific concentrates and CBD-rich formulations.

Maine’s “Medical Use of Marijuana Act” forbids employers from punishing or discriminating against registered patients on account of their status as medical users of marijuana. Yet, this does not mean that employers have an obligation to permit the use of marijuana at work, nor to work while under its influence.

No. Transporting cannabis across state lines is a federal crime regardless of card status or the legal status of cannabis in neighboring states. Patients should consume or store their cannabis within Maine. If traveling to another state with a reciprocity program, purchase fresh cannabis locally at a licensed dispensary rather than attempting to cross state borders with it

Key advantages include lower taxes (5.5% vs. up to 20% for recreational), the ability to possess up to 8 pounds of home-cultivated cannabis, double the home cultivation limit (6 mature plants vs. 3), access to medical-only dispensaries and higher-potency products, program eligibility at age 18 instead of 21, legal employment protections, and reciprocity access in over 25 states and D.C.