Arizona Being Sued Over the Dispensary 25-Mile Rule

Two Arizona men have filed a lawsuit with Maricopa County Superior Court claiming that the state cannot require that medical marijuana patients only be able to obtain their medicine from a state licensed dispensary if they live within 25 miles of a dispensary.

Their attorney argues that the language in the Arizona Constitution prohibits any law that requires anyone to “participate in any health care system.” The men are claiming it’s a matter of free choice.

If the men win the lawsuit it would mean the nearly 95 percent of the 40,000+ medical marijuana cardholders who now live within 25 miles of a dispensary would not be forced to buy their medicine from dispensaries. Instead, patients could grow up to 12 plants for their own use or purchase medicine from a caregiver who grows for patients.

If the lawsuit passes, many dispensaries will be in financial ruin because most of their patients will turn to cultivating marijuana or buying marijuana from a caregiver because prices from these two sources will be cheaper than purchasing from dispensaries that have higher medicine prices due to business expenses such as taxes, security systems, licenses, insurance, lab testing all medicine, and payroll.