Delaware Medical Cannabis Foundational Certification

The Delaware Medical Marijuana Act (Title 16 Ch. 49 A), which is largely based on the Marijuana Policy Project’s model bill, removes criminal sanctions and provides protection from arrest for the compassionate, doctor-recommended use of medical marijuana by Delaware patients with serious medical conditions. The law took effect on July 1, 2011.

Patients are not allowed to grow their own medicine, but they may possess up to six ounces of marijuana. The program includes tightly regulated, limited distribution of medical marijuana by not-for-profit compassion centers. Currently, six compassion centers are operating in the state.

Allowing medical use: To qualify to use medical cannabis, the patient’s physician must have certified, in writing, that the patient has a specified debilitating medical condition and that the patient would receive therapeutic benefit from medical marijuana. Patients then must send the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) a completed application (obtained from DHSS), including a copy of the written certification, and DHSS will issue an ID card after verifying the information. As long as the patient is in compliance with the law and in possession of an ID card, there will be no arrest.

The mission of the Office of Medical Marijuana (OMM) is to protect Delawareans  through proactive monitoring and enforcement of the Delaware Medical Marijuana  Act and accompanying regulations. Rigorous inspection of the regulated vendors  minimizes the risk to human health and environmental impact. OMM accomplishes this mission by:

• Working with the regulated vendors to ensure safe and effective products are available to Delaware’s registered patients
• Stringent control of product inventory to eliminate diversion and use of Medical Marijuana products by non-patients
• Briefing the medical community on their protections and limitations involving the Medical Marijuana Program
• Involving state and local community leaders in discussions pertinent to issues affecting communities
• Close coordination with state and local law enforcement on concerns dealing with the Compassion Centers
• Responsiveness to Delaware’s registered patients

The Division of Public Health (DPH), authorized by 16 Del.C.Ch.49A – Delaware’s Medical Marijuana Act, regulates the state’s Medical Marijuana Program (MMP). As an applicant to the Medical Marijuana Program you are responsible for reading this act and following the stipulations within it. For a complete copy of the Delaware Medical Marijuana Act, contact the DPH Office of Medical Marijuana, or download it here.

Qualifying Conditions

• Cancer
• Terminal Illness
• Positive status for Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV Positive)
• Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS)
• Decompensated Cirrhosis
• Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS/Lou Gehrig’s Disease)
• Agitation of Alzheimer’s Disease
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Autism with aggressive behavior
• Glaucoma
• Chronic Debilitating Migraine
• Anxiety (CBD Rich Card Only)
• A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces one or more of the following;
  1. Cachexia or Wasting Syndrome
  2. Severe debilitating pain that has not responded to previously prescribed medication or surgical measure for more than three months, or for which other treatment options produced serious side effects.
  3. Intractable Nausea
  4. Seizures
  5. Severe and persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to those characteristic of Multiple Sclerosis.

Can other medical conditions be added to the list?

• Any citizen may petition the Department to add conditions or treatments to the list of debilitating medical conditions. This is accomplished by petitioning the Department for consideration of an illness. Click here for petition information.

I have one of the debilitating medical conditions, am I automatically a qualified patient?

• Official written certification must be obtained from a Delaware licensed health care practitioner and submitted with the application.

• U.S. Controlled Substances Act
• Drug Schedule – Cannabis Schedule I
• Drug Schedule (Graphic)
• COVID Cannabis Guidelines
• Economic Impact
• Cannabis genus of flowering plants in the family Cannabaceae
• Legal differentiation between hemp and marijuana distinguished by their respective concentrations of the cannabinoid delta-9 tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)
• 2018 Farm Bill
  • Impact on hemp classification
• SAFE Banking Act
• U.S. Pat. No. 6,630,507
• Trademarks
• Ogden Memo
• Cole Memo
• Wilkenson Memo
• 2018 Sessions Memorandum
• Rohrabacher–Blumenauer Amendment
• Joyce Amendment
• Conant v. Walters
•  What Medical Professionals Can Legally Provide To Their Patients (Graphic)
• Cannabis and Cannabis-Derived Compounds: Quality Considerations for Clinical Research
• Guidance for Industry – Downloadable PDf
• Cannabis and Cannabis-Derived Compounds: Quality Considerations for Clinical Research
• Guidance for Industry – Video Explainer
• Taxes
• Affirmative Defense
• Bankruptcy Protection
• Employment Law
• Access to Banking  – Financial Crimes Enforcement Network FinCEN Guidance
• Copyright and Registration

• Origins of Cannabis
• Early History of Cannabis Cultivation
  • Silk Route
  • Indica
  • Sativa
  • Ruderalis
  • Hybrids
• Medical Cannabis Through The Ages – How Cannabis Spanned The Globe – Downloadable Graphic
• Medical Cannabis In Ancient China
• Medical Cannabis In Other Ancient Civilizations
• Cannabis Timeline – Downloadable Graphic
• Power Struggles Over Cannabis
• Cannabis In Europe and The West
• U.S. Prohibition
  • Marihuana Tax Act
  • Prohibition
  • “Reefer Madness”
• The Implications of U.S. Prohibition
• Shafer Commission
• National Institute on Drug Abuse
• The Legacy Cannabis Marketplace
• Cannabis Cultivation Culture Booms
• The Beginning of the End of Prohibition
  • Prop 215 – Compassionate Care Act
  • I-502
  • Amendment 64
• U.S. Cannabis Policy Today
• Legal Cannabis Lexicon
• Hemp vs. Cannabis
• ASTM – D37 Committee

• Introduction of the Endocannabinoid System (ECS)
• Largest Receptor System
• ECS – Video Explainer
• Newly Discovered
• Chemical Bridge to All Bodily Functions
• Homeostasis
• Healthy Body = Healthy ECS
• ECS – Downloadable Graphic
• Dr Jake Felice – What is the Endocannabinoid System (ECS)? Video Interview
• Largest Neurotransmitter System of all “the body’s supercomputer”
• 1964 discovery of THC and CBD – Raphael Mechoulam, Ph.D and Yehiel Gaoni, Ph.D
• The Scientist – video regarding Raphael Mechoulam, Ph.D discoveries
• Allyn Howlett, Ph.D  – Isolating THC in the brain – 1998
  • No cannabinoid receptors in the cardiac and respiratory centers of the brainstem therefore no overdose from cannabis
• Raphael Mechoulam, Ph.D found in 1992, brain chemical that mirrors the effects of THC
  • Two brain chemicals – anandamide, Sanskrit word “ananda” brain chemical that mimics THC and CBD, 2-Arachidonoylglycerol, which they named 2-AG.
• Endogenous Molecules “endocannabinoids”.
• CB1 receptors, and CB2 receptors
• Cannabinoids and how they attach to receptors
• CB1 receptors
  • Located in the central nervous system and affect many brain functions including movement, anxiety, stress, fear, pain, appetite, reward, and motor control
• CB2 receptors
  • CB2 receptors control the release of cytokines, immuno-regulatory proteins, that are linked to inflammation during illness or after injury.
• Retrograde Inhibition
• Lack of education on the Endocannabinoid System
• Clinical Studies
• At a Glance – Downloadable Infographic
• Homeostatsis
• Humand Thriving Behavior and the ECS

• Minor Cannabinoids: CBG CBC CBN THCV
• Cannabinoid Guide – Downloadable Graphic
• Terpenes
• Terpene Chart – Downloadable Graphic
• What Are Terpenes? – Video
• The Entourage Effect
• Taming THC: potential cannabis synergy and phytocannabinoid-terpenoid entourage effects- Downloadable PDF
• Cannabis and Cannabis Extracts: Greater Than the Sum of Their Parts? – Downloadable PDF
• Tolerance and ECS Down Regulation
• Botanical vs. Single Molecule Compounds & Cannabinoids and Opioids

• Inhalation: Smoking vs. Vaporization
• In the News Discussions
• Cannabis Flower vs. Concentrate
• Different Concentrate Consistencies
• Extraction Methods
• Winterization
• Concentrates Using Solvents
• Solventless Concentrates
• Edibles, Oral Mucosal, Topicals and Suppositories
• The Role of the Medical Provider
• The Role of the Dispensary: Experts within the Dispensary

• Considerations Before Medicating with Cannabis
• Set and Setting
• Drug-Drug Interactions
• Relative Contraindications
• Youth Under 25
• Patients and Cardiac Conditions
• Patients with Psychiatric Diagnoses
• Immunocompromised Patents
• Biphasic Effect
• Finding the Appropriate Dose
• Recommended Ratios for Specific Illnesses

• How Testing Works
• Contaminants: Pesticides, Fungi and Mold
• How to Interpret a Test

• Anxiety Disorders
• Cancer
• Epilepsy
• Gastrointestinal Disorders
• Glaucoma
• HIV/AIDS
• Migraine Headaches
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Neurodegenerative Disorders
• Neuropathy
• Pain
• Palliative Care
• Parkinson’s Disease
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorders
• Sleep Disorders
• Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI)
• Endometriosis
• Premenstrual Syndrome and Premenstrual Dysphoric Disorder
• Menopause

• Opioids
• Cannabis and Opioids
• Global Patterns of Opioid Use and Dependence
• Opioid-Related Overdose Deaths
• Pain Management
• Comparative Pain Scale
• Addictive Potential of Opioids
• Prescribing Opioids for Chronic Pain
• Underlying Principles – Downloadable Graphic
• Studies Show Cannabinoid Medications Effective in Reducing Opioid Use
• Cause of Death by Drug – Downloadable Graphic
• Drug Dependence
• Opioid Use Disorder
• Emerging Evidence for Cannabis’ Role in Opioid Use Disorder – Downloadable PDF
• Cannabis: A Promising Option for the Opioid Crisis – Downloadable PDF
• Cannabis and NSAIDS: More Good News

• Gateway Theory, Addiction and Brain Function
• Cannabis is Highly Addictive
• Cannabis Kills Brain Cells
• Cannabis Kills Motivation
• Cannabis Impairs Memory
• Cannabis Leads to Insanity
• Cannabis Causes Lung Cancer
• Most Recreational Users are Heavy Users
• Cannabis is Dangerous

• Cannabis Use Disorder (CUD)
• Short Term Side Effects
• Long Term Side Effects
• Physical Effects
  • Breathing Problems
  • Increased Heart Rate
  • Development
• Cannabinoid Hypermesis Syndrome (CHS)
• Mental Effects
• What to Avoid
• Cannabis and Driving
• Cannabis Over Consumption
• Cannabis Tolerance