Riverside Pharmacy in Gainesville received its first shipment of Trulieve Low THC Oil and made the first sale of the product on Tuesday.
People who hold a Low THC Oil registry card from the Department of Public Health will be able to purchase medical marijuana at select private pharmacies around Georgia.
“[Physicians] will determine if the patient does meet the criteria, They will submit a request to the Department of Public Health,” Pharmacist Jordan Loggins said. “They will then approve it and the patient will pick up their card. Then at that point, they can use it at any pharmacy that has signed up for the program to get access to the product.”
Loggins explained the product is not a cannabis flower but is derived from the marijuana plant.
“This is not smokeable marijuana, this is all medical grade, either a topical, a capsule or a sublingual product,” Loggins said.
Sylvia Hayes became one of the first people in the state to purchase Low THC Oil at a pharmacy when she purchased her treatment Tuesday at Riverside Pharmacy, according to Trulieve.
Riverside Owner and Pharmacist Scottie Barton discussed what he has seen the Low THC Oil treat.
“I think both of us, as pharmacists have seen patients who have done very well with the THC. We had a good friend whose child was seizing,” Barton said. “They went to Colorado for roughly two years, just to get treatment. There is a benefit to it, so when it did become available, and something that we can put out there to help serve our patients we gladly did it.”
Loggins further explained that the child was having nearly 50 to 100 seizures a day and after treatment they had none.
Under the law, Low THC Oil can be provided to patients who have cancer, epilepsy, Autism spectrum disorder, Parkinsons and Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis as well as others.
“Cancer and hospice patients, those kind of things, we're probably going to see them heavily used in those cases for pain maintenance,” Loggins said.
Barton and Loggins have talked with local physicians who say they have patients who need the product now.
“The Department of Public Health reports there is anywhere from 250 to 500 people in Hall County alone that already have a card,” Loggins said.
Barton and Loggins discussed their excitement to be able to provide patients with the product.
“Right now, we are the first pharmacy in Hall County to receive this,” Barton said. “This is an honor for us. But you know, the biggest thing is, It helps us help the patient and that's what we're here for.”
For a full list of conditions or diseases covered by the law click the link here. Anyone with questions regarding Low THC Oil can contact Riverside Pharmacy at (770)532-6253.
