Dr. Kyle Kingsley, the CEO of Vireo Health, which owns and operates Minnesota Medical Solutions (MinnMed), one of the two providers of medical cannabis in Minnesota, gave state Senators a tour of the production facility that provided remarkable insight into the early stages of the program, which saw the first patients served on July 1st. The information provided to the Senators suggests that the company is overcoming some of the start-up challenges with the program, experiencing tremendous results in patients and is optimistic about the future of the program.
Key Points
- CEO “blown away” by results, especially for epilepsy
- 20+ formulations formed from 12 strains
- Biggest challenge is price, which will improve as the company gains scale
- Program is limited to extractions
- Minnesota is a model for other states (Vireo won one of five licenses in New York)
A huge catalyst for Minnesota’s program could be the addition of intractable pain to the list of qualifying conditions. The Minnesota Department of Health has a website dedicated to this issue and suggests: “State law requires the Commissioner to decide whether to add intractable pain by January 1, 2016. The Commissioner’s decision can be reviewed, supported or reversed by an act of the legislature.” An advisory panel has mixed views, while public support is very strong, with 93% of public comments favorable.
To learn more about Vireo Health, MinnMed and Empire State Health Solutions: https://www.newcannabisventures.com/vb/vireo-health/
