Medical Marijuana is under much controversy these days. The argument against the medical usage of drugs has been going for quite some time. Amid all of this, the State of Pennsylvania has approved its first medical marijuana facility. Last month, Pennsylvania’s government granted 40,000 plus square foot land for a cultivation facility, which will be operated by Cresco Yeltrah.

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Cresco Yeltrah is a joint venture between Chicago based Cresco Labs, and PA based company, Yeltrah Cannabis. The company got permission back in June of this year to open a medical marijuana dispensary in the city of Pittsburgh, which is one of only 27 licensed dispensaries in PA. So how exactly does medical marijuana work?

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Marijuana, or Cannabis is known to many as a recreational drug, but it is also used for a variety of medical reasons. According to the National Institute of Drug Abuse, “The term medical marijuana refers to using the whole, unprocessed marijuana plant or its basic extracts to treat symptoms of illness and other conditions.” Medical marijuana is used to cure diseases like childhood epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, arthritis, glaucoma, HIV, chronic pain, Alzheimer’s, cancer and others. Marijuana is also used to relieve pain and improve the standard of living for people who are terminally ill. So what are the impacts of this legalisation of medical marijuana facility on the economy?

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According to the Bureau of Economic and Business Research’s report on Florida’s economy after the legalization of medical marijuana, “Florida is predicted to make up about 7.9% of the total US legal marijuana market and 16% of the total US medical marijuana market, while the state’s annual medical marijuana sales are projected to surpass an estimated $1.6 billion by 2020.”

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Sales in states totaled up to $996 Million in 2015, and grew up to $6.7 Billion in 2016. Now looking at the job market, medical marijuana facilities will provide a lot of jobs, considering that in a few decades there will be facilities across the US. However, there are a couple of things stopping medical marijuana from becoming a full time revenue generating industry - the stigma around it.

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Because Marijuana is a controversial subject, businesses that plan to start such medical marijuana related facilities are usually denied loans from banks who refuse to back such an “unethical” business. The public perception of drugs, especially weed, is what is getting in the way of the medical marijuana industry from positively benefiting the community, say experts from the Bureau of Economic and Business Research.

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Looking at the economic and medical advantages, it looks like a worthwhile endeavor. However, there is also the question of encouraging usage of drugs, which in turn propels more drug usage and access. The exploitation of the medical marijuana system by children and other people who are not ill, and the bringing about change in the public perception can be a few of many such concerns. So should medical marijuana be legalised or not? This is a question we leave to the experts.