Medical Cannabis States and Their Qualifying Conditions

While many countries are well on their way to legalizing marijuana, the United States has yet to make a significant move. On a federal level, rule-makers seem adamant about leaving the plant classed as a Schedule 1 drug. However, it is an entirely different story regarding individual states.

The gap between state and federal marijuana law is causing a huge amount of confusion. We’re at the point where most people cannot keep up with the latest news regarding legalized medical and recreational marijuana in different states.

A significant majority of states have legalized MMJ and offer fully functioning programs. Others recently permitted medical or recreational weed but are still creating frameworks, processes that often take several years. Sadly, a handful of states seem as if they are a long way away from allowing any form of marijuana plant.

In this article, we attempt to clear up the confusion once and for all. Here are the state-by-state qualifying conditions for every state where medical marijuana is legal. We regularly update this information as necessary.

Medical Marijuana Legal States and their Qualifying Conditions

1. Alabama

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Autism
  • Depression
  • PTSD
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Terminal illness
  • Tourette’s syndrome
  • Sickle cell anemia
  • Epilepsy/seizures
  • Nausea or weight loss related to HIV/AIDS
  • Spasticity associated with MS, ALS, or spinal cord injury
  • Persistent nausea that traditional treatments haven’t helped
  • Any condition causing intractable/chronic pain where conventional therapies/treatments have proven ineffective
  • Weight loss, nausea, chronic pain, or cachexia related to cancer

Learn more about how to get an MMJ card in Alabama here.

2. Alaska

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Multiple sclerosis

*Treatment for any of the above conditions, as well as any “chronic or debilitating disease or treatment of such diseases which produces, for a specific patient, one or more of the following”:

  • Cachexia (wasting syndrome)
  • Chronic or severe pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Epilepsy/seizures
  • Persistent muscle spasms (relating to MS)

Get the full details on the Alaska MMJ program here.

3. Arizona

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • ALS
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Alzheimer’s disease

*A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition that causes any one of the following:

  • Cachexia (wasting syndrome)
  • Severe and chronic pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures/epilepsy
  • Severe or persistent muscle spasms (including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis)
  • PTSD

Here’s how to apply for an MMJ card in Arizona.

4. Arkansas

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • ALS
  • Tourette’s syndrome
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Ulcerative colitis
  • PTSD
  • Severe arthritis
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Peripheral neuropathy
  • Intractable pain (pain that has not responded to ordinary medications, treatment, or surgical measures for more than six months)
  • Severe nausea
  • Epilepsy/seizures
  • Persistent muscle spasms (including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis)

*Any other medical condition or its treatment approved by the Department of Health.

Here are the details on how to apply for MMJ in Arkansas.

5. California

California is one of the most lenient states regarding qualifying conditions. Generally speaking, the use of medical marijuana and the issuance of an MMJ card in California is up to the physician’s discretion. Qualifying conditions include, but are not limited to:

  • HIV/AIDS
  • Glaucoma
  • Radiation therapy side effects
  • Severe nausea
  • Cancer
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Anxiety
  • Arthritis
  • Migraine headaches
  • Chronic pain
  • Cachexia, or wasting syndrome
  • Anorexia
  • Any persistent/chronic medical symptom that could cause serious mental or physical harm if left untreated

Learn more about the California MMJ program here.

6. Colorado

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV or AIDS
  • Cachexia
  • Persistent muscle spasms
  • Seizures
  • Severe nausea
  • Severe pain
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Autism spectrum disorder

Click here for more information on the Colorado MMJ program.

7. Connecticut

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Spinal cord damage/intractable spasticity
  • Epilepsy/uncontrollable seizures
  • Cachexia/wasting syndrome
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Sickle cell disease
  • Post laminectomy syndrome with chronic radiculopathy
  • Severe psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis
  • ALS
  • Ulcerative colitis
  • Complex regional pain syndrome
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Cystic fibrosis
  • Terminal illness requiring end-of-life care
  • Spasticity or neuropathic pain associated with fibromyalgia
  • Severe rheumatoid arthritis
  • Postherpetic neuralgia
  • Hydrocephalus with intractable headache
  • Intractable headache syndromes
  • Neuropathic facial pain
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Osteogenesis imperfecta
  • Tourette syndrome
  • Chronic neuropathic pain
  • Interstitial cystitis

Here’s how to get your MMJ card in Connecticut.

8. Delaware

Broadly speaking, Delaware doesn’t require prospective MMJ patients to have specific qualifying conditions due to the introduction of Senate Bill 24. Physicians can approve patients with any debilitating condition. Here are examples of medical conditions that often result in MMJ card approval when proven:

  • Terminal illness
  • Cancer
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Decompensated cirrhosis
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS/Lou Gehrig’s disease)
  • Agitation of Alzheimer’s disease
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Intractable epilepsy
  • Autism (with self-injurious or aggressive behavior)
  • Glaucoma
  • Chronic debilitating migraines

*A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one or more of the following:

  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Severe, debilitating pain that has not responded to previously prescribed medication or surgical measures for more than three months or where other treatment options produced serious side effects.
  • Intractable nausea
  • Seizures
  • Severe and persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to those characteristic of multiple sclerosis

Learn more about MMJ in Delaware here.

9. Florida

  • Cancer
  • Epilepsy
  • Seizures
  • Chronic muscle spasms
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Medical conditions of the same kind or class as or comparable to those above
  • A terminal condition diagnosed by a physician other than the qualified physician issuing the physician certification
  • Chronic nonmalignant pain caused by a qualifying medical condition or that originates from a qualifying medical condition and persists beyond the usual course of that qualifying medical condition

Here’s all you need to know about MMJ in Florida.

10. Hawaii

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Inflammatory bowel disorders
  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • Lupus
  • Epilepsy
  • Multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Illnesses/injuries relating to military service, including PTSD
  • Asthma under certain conditions
  • Fibromyalgia and painful neuropathies

*The treatment of these conditions or chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one or more of the following:

  • Cachexia (wasting syndrome)
  • Severe pain
  • Chronic nausea
  • Seizures/epilepsy
  • Severe and persistent muscle spasms (including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis or Crohn’s disease)

Find out more about getting a Hawaii MMJ card here.

11. Illinois

Includes, but is not limited to:

  • Agitation of Alzheimer’s disease
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Arnold-Chiari malformation
  • Cancer
  • Causalgia
  • Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy
  • Crohn’s disease
  • CRPS (complex regional pain syndrome Type II)
  • Dystonia
  • Fibrous dysplasia
  • Glaucoma
  • Hepatitis C
  • Hydrocephalus
  • Hydromyelia
  • Interstitial cystitis
  • Lupus
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Myasthenia gravis
  • Myoclonus
  • Nail-patella syndrome
  • Neurofibromatosis
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Post-concussion syndrome
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Reflex sympathetic dystrophy
  • Residual limb pain
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Seizures (including those characteristic of epilepsy)
  • Severe fibromyalgia
  • Sjogren’s syndrome
  • Spinal cord disease (including but not limited to arachnoiditis)
  • Spinal cord injury, i.e., damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity
  • Spinocerebellar ataxia
  • Syringomyelia
  • Tarlov cysts
  • Tourette syndrome
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Cachexia/wasting syndrome

Read our complete guide to MMJ in Illinois here.

12. Louisiana

Includes, but is not limited to:

  • Cancer
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Seizure disorders/epilepsy
  • Spasticity
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Muscular dystrophy and multiple sclerosis
  • Glaucoma
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Severe muscle spasms
  • Intractable pain
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

*Any of these four conditions associated with autism spectrum disorder:

  • Repetitive or self-stimulatory behavior of such severity that the physical health of the person with autism is jeopardized
  • Avoidance of others or inability to communicate of such severity that the physical health of the person with autism is jeopardized
  • Self-injuring behavior
  • Physically aggressive or destructive behavior

Click here for more on MMJ in Louisiana.

13. Maine

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Nail-patella syndrome or the treatment of these conditions;
  • A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces intractable pain, which is pain that has not responded to ordinary medical or surgical measures for more than six months

*A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one or more of the following:

  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures (including but not limited to those characteristic of epilepsy)

*Any other medical condition or its treatment as approved by the DHHS, or:

  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Dyskinetic and spastic movement disorders
  • Other diseases causing severe and persistent muscle spasms

Here’s everything you need to know about MMJ in Maine.

14. Maryland

  • Cachexia/wasting syndrome
  • Anorexia
  • Severe pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures
  • Severe or persistent muscle spasms
  • Glaucoma
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Chronic pain

Follow this link for more on MMJ in Maryland.

15. Massachusetts

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Cancer
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • Multiple sclerosis (MS)
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Other conditions as approved by a qualifying patient’s physician

Learn how to get a Massachusetts MMJ card here.

16. Michigan

  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Arthritis
  • Autism
  • Chronic pain
  • Colitis/ulcerative colitis
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Obsessive-compulsive disorder
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Cerebral palsy
  • Spinal cord injury
  • Tourette syndrome
  • Nail patella, or the treatment of the following conditions:
  • A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that results in wasting syndrome; severe and chronic pain; severe nausea; seizures; and severe and persistent muscle spasms.

Here’s more information on the Michigan MMJ card process.

17. Minnesota

  • Cancer (associated with severe/chronic pain, nausea or severe vomiting, or cachexia or severe wasting syndrome)
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Tourette Syndrome
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Seizures/epilepsy
  • Severe and persistent muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Terminal illness (with a probable life expectancy of less than one year)
  • Intractable pain
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder
  • Autism
  • Obstructive sleep apnea

*If your illness or its treatment produces one or more of the following, you must have cancer or a terminal illness with a probable life expectancy of under one year to qualify for the program:

  • Severe or chronic pain
  • Nausea or severe vomiting
  • Cachexia or severe wasting

Read our in-depth guide to MMJ in Minnesota here.

18. Mississippi

  • Cancer
  • Cachexia
  • Epilepsy/seizures
  • Hepatitis
  • Huntingdon’s disease
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • MS
  • Diabetic/peripheral neuropathy
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • ALS
  • PTSD
  • Agitation of dementia
  • Chronic or debilitating pain
  • Ulcerative colitis
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Glaucoma
  • Sickle-cell anemia
  • Autism (with aggressive or self-injurious behaviors)
  • Spastic quadriplegia
  • Severe muscle spasticity
  • Spinal cord disease or severe injury
  • Intractable nausea
  • Pain refractory to the appropriate management of opioids

Learn more about MMJ in Mississippi here.

19. Missouri

Includes, but is not limited to:

  • Cancer
  • Epilepsy
  • Glaucoma
  • Intractable migraines
  • Chronic pain or persistent muscle spasms (including those associated with multiple sclerosis, seizures, Parkinson’s disease, and Tourette syndrome)
  • Debilitating psychiatric disorders (including but not limited to PTSD)
  • HIV/AIDS
  • A medical condition typically treated with prescription drugs that could lead to physical or psychological dependence
  • Any terminal illness

*Any other chronic debilitating medical condition, including but not limited to:

  • Hepatitis C
  • ALS
  • Irritable bowel syndrome
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Autism
  • Neuropathy
  • Sickle cell anemia
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Cachexia
  • Wasting syndrome

Here’s how to get your Missouri MMJ card.

20. Montana

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Severe chronic pain
  • Intractable nausea or vomiting
  • Epilepsy or an intractable seizure disorder
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Painful peripheral neuropathy
  • A central nervous system disorder resulting in chronic, painful spasticity or muscle spasms
  • Admittance into hospice care
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Learn more about the Montana MMJ program here.

21. Nevada

  • Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)
  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Cachexia (general physical wasting and malnutrition from chronic disease)
  • Persistent muscle spasms (including multiple sclerosis)
  • Seizures (including epilepsy)
  • Severe nausea
  • Severe pain
  • Additional conditions as subject to approval by the Nevada DPBH (Division of Public and Behavioral Health)

Follow this link for more on MMJ in Nevada.

22. New Hampshire

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Chronic pancreatitis
  • Spinal cord injury or disease
  • Traumatic brain injury (TMI)
  • Epilepsy
  • Lupus
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Ulcerative colitis
  • Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

*One or more injuries or conditions that have resulted in one of the following qualifying symptoms, or a severely debilitating or terminal medical condition or its treatment that has produced at least one of the following:

  • Elevated intraocular pressure (glaucoma)
  • Cachexia/wasting syndrome
  • Chemotherapy-induced anorexia
  • Severe pain that has not responded to previously prescribed medication or surgical measures, or for which other treatment options produced serious side effects
  • Constant or severe nausea
  • Moderate to severe vomiting
  • Seizures
  • Severe or persistent muscle spasms

“Qualifying medical condition” can also mean:

  • Moderate to severe chronic pain
  • Severe pain that has not responded to previously prescribed medication or surgical measures or for which other treatment options produced serious side effects
  • Moderate or severe post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

Read the full guide to MMJ in New Hampshire here.

23. New Jersey

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (Lou Gehrig’s disease)
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Terminal cancer
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Any terminal illness with a prognosis of fewer than 12 months
  • Seizure disorders (including epilepsy)
  • Intractable skeletal, muscular spasticity
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Glaucoma (if traditional medicine has failed)
  • Severe or chronic pain
  • Severe nausea or vomiting
  • Wasting syndrome caused by HIV/AIDS and cancer
  • Anxiety
  • Migraines
  • Tourette syndrome
  • Chronic pain related to musculoskeletal disorders (including rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, fibromyalgia, and opioid use disorder)
  • Chronic pain of “visceral origin” (including pancreatitis, irritable bowel syndrome, and bowel dysfunction)

Learn more about how to get MMJ in New Jersey here.

24. New Mexico

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Cancer
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Epilepsy/seizure disorders
  • Glaucoma
  • HCV infection and receiving antiviral treatment currently
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Hospice care
  • Inclusion body myositis
  • Inflammatory autoimmune-mediated arthritis
  • Intractable nausea/vomiting
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord
  • Painful peripheral neuropathy
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Post‐traumatic stress disorder
  • Severe chronic pain
  • Severe anorexia
  • Cachexia
  • Spasmodic torticollis (cervical dystonia)
  • Ulcerative colitis
  • Obstructive sleep apnea

Here’s all you need to know about MMJ in New Mexico.

25. New York

  • Cancer
  • HIV infection or AIDS
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Spinal cord injury with spasticity
  • Epilepsy
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Neuropathy
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder
  • Chronic pain

*Any condition for which an opioid could be prescribed or for which a severe debilitating or life-threatening condition is accompanied by one or more of the following conditions or complications:

  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Severe or chronic pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures
  • Severe or persistent muscle spasms
  • PTSD or opioid use disorder

The Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) has legalized the sale of recreational marijuana in New York and has also expanded the MMJ program. You may qualify for medical marijuana if you have one of the following medical conditions:

  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Autism
  • Dystonia
  • Muscular dystrophy
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Any other condition certified by a medical practitioner

Here’s our complete guide to MMJ in New York.

26. North Dakota

  • Cancer
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Decompensated cirrhosis due to hepatitis C
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Agitation of Alzheimer’s disease or related dementia
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Spinal stenosis/chronic back pain (including neuropathy or damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity)
  • Glaucoma
  • Epilepsy
  • Anorexia nervosa
  • Bulimia nervosa
  • Anxiety disorder
  • Tourette syndrome
  • Ehlers-Danlos syndrome
  • Endometriosis
  • Interstitial cystitis
  • Neuropathy
  • Migraine
  • Rheumatoid arthritis
  • Autism spectrum disorder
  • Brain injury
  • Terminal illness

*Chronic or debilitating diseases or medical conditions or the treatment for such diseases or medical conditions that produce one or more of the following:

  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Severe debilitating pain that has not responded to previously prescribed medication or surgical measures for more than three months or for which other treatment options produced serious side effects
  • Intractable nausea
  • Seizures
  • Severe and persistent muscle spasms, including those characteristic of multiple sclerosis

Find out how to get your North Dakota MMJ card here.

27. Ohio

  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)/Lou Gehrig’s disease
  • Cancer
  • Chronic traumatic encephalopathy
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Epilepsy
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Glaucoma
  • Hepatitis C
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD)
  • Chronic pain or severe/intractable pain
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Sickle cell anemia
  • Spinal cord disease or injury
  • Tourette syndrome
  • Traumatic brain injury
  • Ulcerative colitis

Here’s how to apply for your Ohio MMJ card.

28. Oklahoma

A licensed Oklahoma physician must submit the application and recommendation. There are currently no specific qualifying conditions (recommendations are left up to the physician’s discretion). Here are a few conditions that often lead to MMJ card approval when proven:

  • Cancer
  • Autism
  • Anxiety
  • PTSD
  • Depression
  • Seizures
  • Muscle spasms
  • Cachexia
  • Anorexia
  • Severe nausea

Learn more about Oklahoma’s MMJ program here.

29. Oregon

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • A degenerative or pervasive neurological condition
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)

*A medical condition or treatment for a medical condition that produces one or more of the following:

  • Cachexia (a weight-loss disease that can be caused by HIV or cancer)
  • Severe pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures, including but not limited to seizures caused by epilepsy
  • Persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to spasms caused by multiple sclerosis

The following medical conditions may also lead to MMJ approval when proven:

  • GERD
  • Spondylitis
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Arthritis
  • IBS
  • Degenerative disk disease
  • Carpal tunnel syndrome

Here are more details on the MMJ card process in Oregon.

30. Pennsylvania

  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • Anxiety disorders
  • Autism
  • Cancer, including remission therapy
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Damage to the nervous tissue of the central nervous system (brain-spinal cord) with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity and other associated neuropathies
  • Dyskinetic and spastic movement disorders
  • Epilepsy
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • Intractable seizures
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Neurodegenerative diseases
  • Neuropathies
  • Opioid use disorder for which conventional therapeutic interventions are contraindicated or ineffective, or for which adjunctive therapy is indicated in combination with primary therapeutic interventions
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder
  • Severe chronic or intractable pain of neuropathic origin or severe chronic or intractable pain
  • Sickle cell anemia
  • Terminal illness
  • Tourette syndrome

Click here to learn more about MMJ in Pennsylvania.

31. Rhode Island

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Hepatitis C
  • Autism spectrum disorder
  • PTSD

*A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one or more of the following:

  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Severe, debilitating, chronic pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures, including but not limited to those characteristic of epilepsy
  • Severe and persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to those characteristic of multiple sclerosis or Crohn’s disease
  • Agitation related to Alzheimer’s Disease

Read our complete guide to MMJ in Rhode Island here.

32. South Dakota

  • Cancer
  • Glaucoma
  • Severe debilitating pain
  • Cachexia/wasting syndrome
  • Severe or persistent muscle spasms, including those part of multiple sclerosis

You may also be eligible for a South Dakota MMJ card if you have one of the following conditions:

  • Hepatitis C
  • Alzheimer’s
  • Crohn’s disease
  • PTSD
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Endometriosis
  • Ulcerative colitis

Here’s more information on how to get MMJ in South Dakota.

33. Utah

  • HIV/AIDS
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Cancer
  • Cachexia
  • Persistent nausea that is not significantly responsive to conventional treatment except for nausea associated with pregnancy, cannabis-induced cyclical vomiting syndrome, or CBD hyperemesis syndrome
  • Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis
  • Epilepsy or debilitating seizures
  • Multiple sclerosis or debilitating muscle spasms
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that is being treated and monitored by a mental health therapist and has been properly diagnosed and documented
  • Autism
  • Terminal illness when the remaining life expectancy is less than six months
  • A condition resulting in the individual receiving hospice care
  • A rare condition or disease (affecting less than 200,000 individuals in the U.S., as defined by federal law) which is inadequately managed using conventional treatments (other than opioids or opiates) or physical interventions
  • Pain lasting longer than two weeks that is inadequately managed, in the qualified medical provider’s opinion, despite treatment with conventional medications (other than opioids or opiates) or physical intervention

*If the patient does not have a specifically named qualifying condition, they may petition the Compassionate Use Board for medical cannabis approval

Find out how to get a Utah MMJ card here.

34. Vermont

  • Cancer
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Glaucoma
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Parkinson’s disease

*Or the treatment of ANY ONE OF THE ABOVE conditions, or if the disease or the treatment results in severe, persistent, and intractable symptoms of:

  • PTSD (provided the applicant is undergoing psychotherapy or counseling with a licensed mental health care provider)
  • Cachexia or wasting syndrome
  • Chronic pain
  • Severe nausea
  • Seizures
  • Severe and persistent muscle spasms

Here are the full details of Vermont’s MMJ program.

35. Virginia

There are no specific qualifying conditions to get a Virginia MMJ card as it is at the doctor’s discretion. However, patients with the following conditions are likely to receive a physician’s recommendation:

  • PTSD
  • HIV/AIDS
  • MS
  • Cancer
  • Chronic pain where conventional treatments such as opioids have proven ineffective
  • Crohn’s disease

Learn more about MMJ in Virginia here.

36. Washington

  • Cancer
  • Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Epilepsy or other seizure disorder
  • Spasticity disorders
  • Intractable pain (pain unrelieved by standard medical treatments and medications)
  • Glaucoma
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Hepatitis C

*Other diseases which result in:

  • Anorexia
  • Nausea
  • Vomiting
  • Wasting
  • Appetite loss
  • Cramping
  • Seizures
  • Muscle spasms/spasticity
  • Chronic renal failure requiring hemodialysis
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Traumatic brain injury (TBI)

Here’s more on how to get MMJ in Washington.

37. West Virginia

  • Cancer
  • HIV/AIDS
  • Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS)
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Damage to the nervous tissue of the spinal cord with objective neurological indication of intractable spasticity
  • Epilepsy
  • Neuropathies
  • Huntington’s disease
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)
  • Intractable seizures
  • Sickle cell anemia
  • Severe chronic or intractable pain of neuropathic origin or severe chronic or intractable pain for which conventional treatment and opiate therapy is contraindicated or has proved ineffective
  • Terminal illness with a life expectancy of approximately one year or less if the illness runs its normal course

Learn how to get your West Virginia MMJ card here.

38. Washington D.C.

  • Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
  • Acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)
  • Glaucoma
  • Conditions characterized by severe and persistent muscle spasms, such as multiple sclerosis
  • Cancer

*Medical treatments that qualify for the use of medical marijuana:

  • Chemotherapy
  • Use of azidothymidine or protease inhibitors
  • Radiotherapy

Read our in-depth guide to MMJ in Washington D.C. here.

39. Puerto Rico

  • Anorexia
  • Autism
  • Cancer
  • HIV/AIDS
  • ALS
  • Anxiety disorders
  • Bipolar disorder
  • Crohn’s disease
  • Depression
  • Fibromyalgia
  • Glaucoma
  • Parkinson’s disease
  • Spinal cord injury
  • Hepatitis C
  • Inflammatory bowel disease
  • PTSD
  • Peripheral neuropathies
  • Epilepsy
  • Arthritis
  • Multiple sclerosis
  • Alzheimer’s disease
  • Migraine

Here’s more on getting an MMJ card in Puerto Rico.

In the following states, it is legal to purchase marijuana without an MMJ card as long as you’re aged 21+.

  • Alaska
  • Arizona
  • California
  • Colorado
  • Connecticut
  • Delaware
  • Illinois
  • Maine
  • Maryland
  • Massachusetts
  • Michigan
  • Minnesota
  • Missouri
  • Montana
  • Nevada
  • New Jersey
  • New Mexico
  • New York
  • Ohio
  • Oregon
  • Rhode Island
  • Vermont
  • Virginia
  • Washington
  • Washington, D.C.

However, please note that recreational sales have yet to begin in certain states. Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., adult-use weed is technically legal, but there is no provision for commercial sales.

Also, the American territories of Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands legalized recreational cannabis in 2019 and 2018, respectively. The U.S. Virgin Islands legalized MMJ in 2019, and followed up with recreational legalization in January 2023.

There are also some states that have specific rules on the use of CBD oil and other CBD (hemp) products.

If you have any updates about the information in this post, please feel free to comment below to share it with us on our Facebook Page!

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