This is my personal view, based on my own experience.
To maintain access to medical cannabis, I have to schedule an appointment with a bona fide physician—$102 out of pocket—plus about $20 in gas. After that appointment, I have to wait for the paperwork to process, then print documents, go to a bank, get a notary, and wait again.
Why? Because there are two expiration dates involved—and the one that matters most is whichever expires first. At least, that’s how the system behaves. My medical card doesn’t expire until January 25th, yet my practitioner’s letter expired in December. Even though my card itself is still technically valid, the system automatically deactivated it based on the earlier expiration date.
So now, even after waiting the stated 24–48 hours for the system to update, I still can’t go to Speakeasy. I have to go to a bank, pay a notary to verify that I am who I say I am—just to smoke weed. Once notarized, I then have to scan the document, upload it to the medical patient portal, and wait again for approval.
Does anyone else have to go through this level of bureaucracy for their medication?
Abuse Of Patient Access Requirements?
How is it even legally sound to charge people access to medicine? They already charge at the dispensary—fine, that’s expected. But this additional process of maintaining the card itself provides zero tangible benefit to the patient. It is entirely focused on complicating access and extracting money. Governor Andy Beshear has expressed pride in this system, which is… confusing, but at least we technically have a medical program now.
A genuine thank you to Kentucky for not charging us again for the card renewal for 2026—especially considering there are currently only two dispensaries open statewide, meaning access is extremely limited. Requiring a physician to repeatedly “confirm” that someone still has PTSD is not cognitively sound, is baseless in science, and frankly feels like an unnecessary thorn in the side of patients.
To add context: there is currently zero momentum in Hardin County. I did reach out to Michelle, who is running for Mayor of Radcliff, to ask about the future of cannabis and her views on medical marijuana. Her response was very brief and showed little interest in the topic, though she did say she would simply echo whatever the law is. Both Elizabethtown and Radcliff are slated to receive dispensaries, but no site locations have been announced. The next dispensaries expected to open will be in Louisville.
I look forward to the day when we can legally smoke at a cookout—drama free, worry free, and without unnecessary paperwork or extra fees.
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