{"id":9110,"date":"2020-03-24T00:22:57","date_gmt":"2020-03-24T00:22:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/?p=4026585"},"modified":"2020-03-24T00:22:57","modified_gmt":"2020-03-24T00:22:57","slug":"can-marijuana-dispensaries-stay-open-during-colorados-coronavirus-crisis-it-depends","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/can-marijuana-dispensaries-stay-open-during-colorados-coronavirus-crisis-it-depends\/","title":{"rendered":"Can marijuana dispensaries stay open during Colorado\u2019s coronavirus crisis? It depends."},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"wp_fb_like_button\" style=\"margin:5px 0 5px 5px;float:right;height:100px;\"><script src=\"http:\/\/connect.facebook.net\/en_US\/all.js#xfbml=1\"><\/script><fb:like href=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/can-marijuana-dispensaries-stay-open-during-colorados-coronavirus-crisis-it-depends\/\" send=\"true\" layout=\"standard\" width=\"450\" show_faces=\"false\" font=\"arial\" action=\"like\" colorscheme=\"light\"><\/fb:like><\/div><div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<div><img src=\"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/can-marijuana-dispensaries-stay-open-during-colorados-coronavirus-crisis-it-depends.jpg\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\" \/><\/div>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/03\/23\/coronavirus-colorado-marijuana-dispensaries\/?utm_source=feedburner&amp;utm_medium=feed&amp;utm_campaign=Feed%3A+dp-news-marijuana+%28Denver+Post%3A+News%3A+Marijuana%29&amp;utm_content=Google+UK#comments-anchor\"><span class=\"spot-im-replies-count\" data-post-id=\"4026585\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Colorado Gov. Jared Polis <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/03\/22\/colorado-new-coronavirus-cases-march-22\/\">deemed marijuana dispensaries \u201ccritical\u201d retail businesses<\/a> in an executive order Sunday urging employers to reduce their in-person workforces, meaning they would stay open if other industries were forced to shutter to mitigate the spread of coronavirus.<\/p>\n<p>The governor\u2019s order, however, will change how dispensaries do business. In-person sales are limited to medical patients only; recreational customers must order in advance for curbside pickup. The order is in effect from 8 p.m. on Tuesday until April 11, unless extended by the governor.<\/p>\n<p>Some counties classified dispensaries among essential services allowed to remain open during the pandemic independent of the governor\u2019s order. For example, in San Miguel County, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/03\/18\/san-miguel-county-blood-draw-test-coronavirus\/\">which mandated residents shelter in place on March 18<\/a>, dispensaries are open to fill pickup orders only.<\/p>\n<p>In Summit County, brick and mortar marijuana stores were allowed to remain open per city ordinance until the governor imposed stricter guidelines. If there\u2019s conflict between state and local rules, the more restrictive ones are enforced, said public information officer Julie Sutor.<\/p>\n<p>On Monday, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/03\/23\/liquor-stores-dispensaries-closing-denver-shelter-in-place\/\">Denver Mayor Michael Hancock issued \u201cstay at home\u201d order<\/a> that initially classified medical dispensaries as essential businesses, but not recreational, essentially ending adult-use sales until April 11. But <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CityofDenver\/status\/1242224080167657472\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Denver walked back that\u00a0 decision<\/a> by late afternoon, however, exempting pot shops that implement \u201cextreme social distancing by limiting how many customers can be inside at one time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Advocates such as Cindy Sovine worry moratoriums like this could restrict some residents from obtaining their medicine. Sovine, a Denver-based lobbyist and consultant, said since adult-use became legal in 2012, many patients allowed their medical cards to lapse because most products are widely available on the recreational level.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCities like Aurora don\u2019t even have medical,\u201d Sovine said, adding restrictions could lead to an increase in illicit market activity that could be difficult to combat once circumstances settle down.<\/p>\n<p>Not only that, but <a href=\"https:\/\/www.marijuanamoment.net\/marijuana-industry-pleads-for-access-to-federal-coronavirus-business-relief\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">marijuana businesses do not currently qualify for federal stimulus relief<\/a> and Denver\u2019s order may put dispensaries out of business, Sovine said.<\/p>\n<p>While dispensaries are exempt from cutting 50% of their staff like other \u201cnon-critical\u201d businesses following the governor\u2019s order, many are changing operating procedures to limit the potential for person-to-person spread of respiratory illness COVID-19.<\/p>\n<p>Seed and Smith in Commerce City plans to reduce the number of hours employees working in its cultivation, manufacturing and packaging facility to avoid having too many people in the same room at the same time, said Mike Lempert, director of logistics. Starting this week, the dispensary is closing its storefront and requiring all sales to be made online or by phone for pickup. Seed and Smith plans to launch text message ordering in the coming weeks, too.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEverything is meant to limit everyone\u2019s exposure to another human,\u201d Lempert said of those moves.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"related right\" \/>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/03\/19\/online-cannabis-sales-colorado-social-distancing\/\">Online ordering has already proven a popular option<\/a> for cannabis consumers looking to limit their interaction at retail stores, and industry personnel think the trend could reshape buying habits long-term.<\/p>\n<p>Still, some don\u2019t think it\u2019s enough. Truman Bradley, president of the Marijuana Industry Group, would like to see the state allow marijuana delivery to prevent in-person gatherings and protect patients who might have compromised immune systems. Colorado legalized medical marijuana delivery in 2019, but it has yet to be adopted by many municipalities. Boulder, where <a href=\"https:\/\/www.denverpost.com\/2020\/03\/19\/medical-marijuana-delivery-boulder\/\">the first delivery license was issued to The Dandelion dispensary<\/a>, is a notable exception.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve already got the legal infrastructure that allows for this, so all it requires are these local municipalities to allow for delivery during times of crisis and they can come back and revisit it,\u201d Sovine said. \u201cThat is the safest pathway to keep access open.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<div class=\"media_block\"><\/div>\n<p>In-person sales are limited to medical patients only; recreational customers must order in advance for curbside pickup. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[5062,52,6811,8264,8266,376,8270,6892,7455,854,6813,7079,77,5577,56,9,5019,6845,1,3,61,1736],"tags":[5063,2632,6816,8265,8268,2954,8271,6893,7459,3427,6818,7080,2655,5580,2636,5022,6846],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9110"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9110"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9110\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannitrol.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}