Missouri medical cannabis patients have already experienced issues with unscrupulous and inexperienced caregivers who promise to cultivate on their behalf. While some supposed caregivers are legitimate scam artists, others are legitimately trying to help. The problem is that most patients aren’t sure how to protect themselves from getting into this situation. Let’s explore some helpful ideas, from a patient perspective, that will both protect the patient and enhance the patient-caregiver relationship.
Non-starters
A non-starter is an informal reference to a person, plan, or idea that has no chance of succeeding or being effective. There are a short list of scenarios that fall into this category. I’ll describe these in the form of questions a patient should ask a potential caregiver. I’d suggest leading with these questions so that the patient can most effectively weed out (pun intended) those who aren’t right for them.
- “What is your average length of grow cycle and yield?”
The patient should be looking for benchmarks that reduce to at least 4 ounces per month. While the patient may not need that much medicine, it is an excellent indicator of a cultivator’s ability to grow medicine.- If that amount is anything less than 4 ounces per month, walk away.
- If the caregiver hasn’t had a harvest yet or hasn’t had enough harvests to have an average, walk away.
- “What is your service charge per ounce?”
While caregivers should not be selling you cannabis, they can certainly price their services by the ounce. Prices higher than $200 per ounce are just too much, and a price between $150-$200 needs to have strong justification. Non-commercial cultivators should be able to produce medicine for less than $150 per ounce, including $20/hour of the cultivator’s time. For example, I can produce an ounce for less than $100 – including my time.- If the cost is higher than $200 per ounce, walk away.
- If the cost is $150-$200 per ounce, be wary.
- “Are there any up-front costs before delivery of medicine?”
Depending on your needs, there may be up-front costs for the cultivator to expand their garden. I have high-needs patients who have caused this need for me. However, if the patient only needs an ounce or two each month a good cultivator should not need to do much expansion at all. Regardless, if expansion is necessary the patient should always arrange to help offset this cost only when medicine begins to be delivered. These costs should be highly detailed and shared with the patient, then the patient can arrange a temporary surcharge per ounce. If the patient elects to expand someone’s garden outright (large one-time fee), you should ensure that all of that equipment belongs to you and that it will be transferred to you should the relationship end. At the end of the day; if the caregiver can’t afford an expansion how could they afford to address unforeseen issues [which will arise] in the garden?- If any up-front costs are demanded prior to a completed caregiver registration (you’ll get an email confirmation from the state), walk away.
- If up-front costs can’t be converted to temporary monthly surcharges, after medicine begins to be delivered, walk away.
- “If I give you seeds, will you grow them for me?”
The answer should always be, yes. If not, walk away. - “Do I need to purchase all 4 ounces each month?”
The answer should always be, no. If not, walk away.
Other questions and considerations:
- “Do you have experience cultivating?”
The patient will be in better hands with someone who has grown plants before. There is no need to mention cannabis as most horticulture experience transfers directly. - “Do you have any other patients and would they be willing to be a reference for you?”
It’s better if they have existing patients who will speak on their behalf. However, many patients will feel this is an invasion of privacy – which should be respected.- If yes, the caregiver should at least be able to show a caregiver number. A patient can verify the validity with DHSS if desired.
- “What cultivation methods do you use?”
This is a good question if the patient has a preference of hydro, soil, organic, etc. - “Which varieties do you have available?”
It is important that the cultivator has, or plans to have, a selection of varieties. In this way you can sample them all to find the one(s) that work best for you. You can also make note and check their descriptions on leafly.com to see if they might work for you. - “What do you use for pest management?”
Take notes of the answers to this and do some research (asking experienced growers is good) on whether or not those things are healthy for medical cananbis. - “Do you have experience helping others medicate with cannabis?”
Although this isn’t a strong requirement, a knowledgeable grower can be a real asset. They should know that high-THC varieties are not the only medicine to be found. In fact, most conditions can be treated best using a combination of THCTHC is the most famous cannabinoid and is psychoactive. TH... and CBDCBD is a cannabinoid with high medical value. It lessens t... More.
At the end of the day, a patient should truly ‘follow your gut.’ I believe there is definitely truth to this axiom. If it doesn’t feel right, then avoid the situation! If you do interrogate a potential caregiver and you decide to go forward, these questions will have at least helped you to understand your caregiver better and will only serve to strengthen your relationship. Remember, patience is key. It takes 2.5 – 4 months to grow cannabis from seed to medicine ready to consume.
Do you have other questions you would add to this list, or experiences to share with fellow patients and caregivers? Please share that feedback! I will update this article when I receive feedback with the hope is that this can become a go-to resource for patients who are searching for a caregiver.
Best of luck!
— The Lit Farmer —