LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC 36 NEWS NOW) —Medical marijuana officially becomes legal in Kentucky starting January 1st, 2025. Right now, the state is working to license those who will be selling the cannabis. The lottery process began yesterday, and not all who applied were selected. One business based in Utah says they were disappointed to hear their business didn’t even make it through the application process. “Our hope was to get into the lottery process, our hope was to be included,” Ted Roxbury with Pure Plan said. On Friday, Roxbury said they received an email from the state saying their application wasn’t approved, therefore, they wouldn’t be added to the lottery. “We decided to throw our hat in the ring and pay the $5,000 application fee as well as we secured a lease on a building outside of Lexington,” he said. Similar to Kentucky, he says Utah legalized the use of medical marijuana in an effort to reduce the use of opioids. “After lots of research and analysis across the country, the state legislators here decided that cannabis for pain management was better than opioids for pain management,” Roxbury said. Back here in the Commonwealth, in order to receive a medical cannabis card, you must be diagnosed with a medical condition like cancer, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other serious conditions. “Our founder, Becky, had some back pain from multiple surgeries and found relief in CBD and then ultimately medical cannabis,” he said. They say they are going to request a hearing with the state to see if their business can be reconsidered. We reached out to Kentucky’s Office of Medical Cannabis but have not heard back. Categories: Featured, Local News, News Tags: cannabis, legalize, medical marijuana, sb 47, utah, weed