Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee announced this morning that five licensed medical marijuana compassion centers have received state approval to begin selling recreational marijuana on or after December 1.

These five outlets will be the first in the state to legally sell recreational marijuana to those 21 and older. The licenses are being issued pursuant to the Rhode Island Cannabis Act, which was passed by the General Assembly and signed into law by Governor McKee in May. The law called for applications for “hybrid retail licenses,” which allow licensed compassion centers to sell both medical marijuana as well as safe, well-regulated and competitively priced marijuana products to Rhode Island adults over the age of 21. Licenses were issued in early October

As of this morning, the five compassion centers that have received state approval to commence adult use sales are:

• Aura of Rhode Island (Central Falls)
• Thomas C. Slater Center (Providence)
• Mother Earth Wellness (Pawtucket)
• Greenleaf Compassionate Care Center (Portsmouth)
• RISE Warwick (Warwick)

“This milestone is the result of a carefully executed process to ensure that our state’s entry into this emerging market was done in a safe, controlled and equitable manner,” said Governor Dan McKee. “It is also a win for our statewide economy and our strong, locally based cannabis supply chain, which consists of nearly 70 licensed cultivators, processors and manufacturers in addition to our licensed compassion centers. Finally, I thank the leadership of the General Assembly for passing this practical implementation framework in the Rhode Island Cannabis Act and I look forward to continuing our work together on this issue.”

“We were pleased with the quality and comprehensiveness of the applications we received from the state’s compassion centers, and we are proud to launch adult use sales in Rhode Island just six months after the Cannabis Act was signed into law, marking the Northeast’s fastest implementation period,” said Matt Santacroce, interim deputy director of the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation. “We look forward to continuing to work with the state’s cannabis business community to ensure this critical economic sector scales in compliance with the rules and regulations put forward by state regulators.

More information regarding legal cannabis in Rhode Island can be found on the Office of Cannabis Regulation’s website by clicking here.