- Cannabis Law
- by Marni Meistrell
Before you can buy medical marijuana from a licensed dispensary, you must establish your eligibility to use medical cannabis.
Dispensaries like Encanna are not allowed to sell their products to just anyone. But once you’ve acquired your medical marijuana patient ID card, you’ll be allowed to purchase up to a 30-day supply (1.5 ounces per day) of cannabis-based medication on your first visit.
All new medical marijuana patient ID cards are valid for a period of one year, and once they expire you will have to renew your application to receive a new card.
Who Can Use Medical Marijuana?
You could be eligible to purchase and use medical marijuana products if you suffer from one of the following qualifying conditions:
- Cancer
- HIV
- Crohn’s disease
- Parkinson’s disease
- Fibromyalgia
- Arthritis
- Anorexia
- Hepatitis C
- Epilepsy
- Anxiety disorders
- Migraine headaches
- Alzheimer’s & Dementia
- Spinal cord injuries
- MS
Or similar degenerative disorders and any illness marked by one or more of these symptoms:
- Chronic pain
- Severe nausea
- Painful muscle spasms
- Cachexia (a wasting condition).
Should you meet this criteria, the process for getting a medical marijuana patient ID card is not overly complicated or stressful.
Here’s how you should proceed…
If you are an adult (age 21 or older) seeking to purchase medical marijuana for your own use:
1. Find a doctor who can issue a recommendation for medical marijuana.
Only doctors officially sanctioned by the Puerto Rico Department of Health (Departamento de Salud) are allowed to recommend medical marijuana as a form of treatment. If the authorized physician you visit believes cannabis-based medicines offer you the best chance of relief from your symptoms, he or she will give you a written recommendation that confirms your need for medical-grade marijuana products.
More than 200 physicians scattered across Puerto Rico have received permission from the government to recommend medical marijuana products for qualified patients, and you can find them listed here.
2. Fill out an application form and put together an application package.
You’ll be asked to provide basic personal information (name, address, telephone number, email address) on this form, which is available for download here. You must sign the form in front of a notary, who will add their seal to the document.
In addition to your notarized application form, you’ll also need to provide a photocopy of a government-issued ID (driver’s license or passport) that includes a portrait and a signature.
The cost of submitting your application is $25, which is payable by certified check or postal money order made out to the “Secretario de Hacienda.”
3. Submit your application package to the Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal.
If delivering your application in person, visit this address:
Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal
1506 Avenida Ponce de León (3rd Floor)
Santurce, Puerto Rico 00922 (Santurce is the largest district in the capital city of San Juan).
To submit your application by mail, send all required items to:
Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal is
PO Box 70184
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00938-8184
If you are an authorized companion of an adult with a qualifying condition seeking access to medical marijuana:
To obtain a medical marijuana ID as a representative of another person, you should put together an application package that contains the following items:
A filled-out application form that includes your personal information (name, address, phone number, email address) as well as the personal information of the patient. Copies of this application form can be downloaded here. The form should include your notarized signature.
- A photocopy of your government-issued ID (driver’s license or passport) with portrait and signature.
- A copy of your criminal record (Certificado de Antecedentes Penales). Learn more about how to obtain one here.
- A notarized letter of authorization from the patient, which affirms the right of the representative to obtain an ID card (and medical marijuana products) on the patient’s behalf.
- A written recommendation from an authorized physician that affirms the eligibility of the patient to purchase medical-grade marijuana products from a licensed dispensary.
- A certified check or postal money order in the amount of $25, made out to the “Secretario de Hacienda.”
To be recognized as an authorized companion, you should meet one of these two criteria:
- You must be an adult (age 21 or older) living in the same residence with the patient; or,
- You must work in a medical facility involved in the patient’s medical treatment plan.
If delivering the application package in person, visit this address:
Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal
1506 Avenida Ponce de León (3rd Floor)
Santurce, Puerto Rico 00922 (Santurce is the largest district in the capital city of San Juan).
To submit the application by mail, send all required items to:
Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal is
PO Box 70184
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00938-8184
If you are the parent or guardian of a minor (age 20 or under) with a qualifying condition seeking access to medical marijuana:
While medical patients classified as minors cannot purchase cannabis-based medications, parents or guardians can buy medical marijuana products for them.
If you are the parent or guardian of a minor with a qualifying medical condition, you can receive a medical marijuana ID by putting together an application that includes:
A filled-out application form that includes the minor patient’s personal information (name, address, phone number, email address). The signature on the form must be notarized, and copies of this application form can be downloaded. Unfortunately at the moment the forms have been moved off the Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal website. Encanna will update our website when the form is available.
- A photocopy of your government-issued ID (driver’s license or passport) with portrait and signature.
- A copy of your criminal record (Certificado de Antecedentes Penales). Directions for obtaining one can be found here.
- A letter of consent from you giving your permission for the minor in your care to use medical marijuana products.
- A certified copy of the minor’s birth certificate.
- A written recommendation from two authorized physicians that affirm the eligibility of the patient to purchase medical-grade marijuana products from a licensed dispensary.
- A certified check or postal money order in the amount of $25, made out to the “Secretario de Hacienda.”
If delivering the application package in person, visit this address:
Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal
1506 Avenida Ponce de León (3rd Floor)
Santurce, Puerto Rico 00922 (Santurce is the largest district in the capital city of San Juan).
To submit the application by mail, send all required items to:
Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal is
PO Box 70184
San Juan, Puerto Rico 00938-8184
If you are a tourist visiting Puerto Rico and would like to purchase medical marijuana products:
Are you a visitor from the United States with a currently valid medical marijuana ID issued by your state? If so, you can use that card to purchase cannabis-based medications from a licensed Puerto Rico dispensary—but only if you suffer from a health condition on Puerto Rico’s approved list.
Even if you already have a doctor’s recommendation obtained in your state, you still must acquire a recommendation for medical marijuana from a physician officially sanctioned by the Puerto Rico Department of Health (Departamento de Salud). A comprehensive list of these physicians can be found here.
If you are visiting from outside the United States, or come from a state that has not yet legalized medical marijuana, you will have to obtain a medical marijuana patient ID card from the Oficina de Sustancias Controladas y Cannabis Medicinal to purchase cannabis-related products. To do so you must follow the same procedures as an adult resident of Puerto Rico.
*For Utuado, Dra. Shirley Ramos Pérez is joined by Dr. Luis J Goveo Ortiz
A2 Urb Cabrera
Utuado, Puerto Rico 00641-2212
Phone: (787) 894-3987
