From left, Paula Newman, Alexandra Davis, Susan Lara and Brenda Gunsallus work on their application for a medical marijuana dispensary and production facility Wednesday, July 16, 2014.
Tuesday, Aug. 19, 2014 | 3:31 p.m.
CARSON CITY – The state's health department received more than 400 applications to operate medical marijuana businesses in Nevada by the deadline Monday.
The state Division of Public and Behavioral Health says it won’t have a final number until later this week or early next week, but advocates are already calling the preliminary numbers a success.
Sen. Tick Segerblom, the author of the medical marijuana distribution law, said the initial fees to submit an application will probably surpass the revenue from internet poker.
“It’s hard to believe it’s this big,” he said Tuesday. Each applicant is required to put up a non-refundable $5,000 in submitting his or her bid.
State records show that 5,859 Nevadans have medical marijuana cards issued by 278 doctors. Of the total, 4,196 cardholders are in Clark County, 680 in Washoe County and the rest in rural Nevada.
Pam Graber, spokeswoman for the state’s medical marijuana program, said the agency will accept mail-in applications if the postmark is before Monday's 5 p.m. deadline. She said she expects some to trickle in later this week.
There is no breakdown on how many of the 400 are for dispensaries, cultivation facilities, processing plants or inspection stations. And there is no count at this time how many are from Clark, Washoe or the rural counties.
Following the ten day open application period, the agency has 90 days to process the applications and decide who qualifies for a license.
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