New Jersey is poised to create what some have projected to be a $2 billion marketplace centered on the in-state growing, processing, delivery and retailing of adult use cannabis. While this marketplace is ready to launch over the next few quarters, it bears considering how, if at all, the adult use marketplace will impact the Medical Marijuana Program (MMP) and the cannabis medical market in New Jersey.  

At the outset, while New Jersey has had a MMP in place since 2010, there are currently only 12 companies who are licensed under the MMP and just 18 dispensaries in the state. The attempt to double the number of licenses and dispensaries in 2019 was waylaid by litigation challenging the evaluation process used by the Department of Health to score applicants. Now the Cannabis Regulatory Commission (CRC) has jurisdiction over both the existing MMP and the adult use marketplace to come. Their initial work includes issuing new MMP licenses after the redo of the challenged scoring methods and could result in the issuance of 24 new MMP licenses.