Virginia Law

A. No person shall operate a pharmaceutical processor or a cannabis dispensing facility without first obtaining a permit from the Board. The application for such permit shall be made on a form provided by the Authority and signed by a pharmacist who will be in full and actual charge of the pharmaceutical processor's dispensing area or cannabis dispensing facility. The Board shall establish an application fee and other general requirements for such application. Effective June 1, 2027, no previously issued permit shall remain valid unless the pharmaceutical processor has received dual-use verification from the Board pursuant to § 4.1-1602.1.

B. Each permit shall expire annually on a date determined by the Board in regulation. The number of permits that the Board may issue or renew in any year is limited to one permit in each health service area established by the Board of Health, which shall govern the operations of the pharmaceutical processor and up to five cannabis dispensing facilities in each health service area established by the Board of Health. Permits shall be displayed in a conspicuous place on the premises of the pharmaceutical processor and cannabis dispensing facility.

C. The Board shall adopt regulations establishing health, safety, and security requirements for pharmaceutical processors and cannabis dispensing facilities. Such regulations shall include requirements for (i) physical standards; (ii) location restrictions; (iii) security systems and controls; (iv) minimum equipment and resources; (v) recordkeeping; (vi) labeling and packaging; (vii) routine inspections no more frequently than once annually; (viii) processes for safely and securely dispensing and delivering in person cannabis products to a patient, his registered agent, or, if such patient is a minor or a vulnerable adult as defined in § 18.2-369, such patient's parent or legal guardian; (ix) dosage limitations for cannabis products that provide that each dispensed dose of a cannabis product not exceed 10 milligrams of total tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), except as permitted under § 4.1-1603.2; (x) a process for the wholesale distribution of and the transfer of usable cannabis, botanical cannabis, cannabis oil, and cannabis products between pharmaceutical processors, between a pharmaceutical processor and a cannabis dispensing facility, and between cannabis dispensing facilities; (xi) an allowance for the sale of devices for administration of dispensed cannabis products and hemp-based cannabidiol (CBD) products that meet the applicable standards set forth in state and federal law, including the laboratory testing standards set forth in subsection N; (xii) an allowance for the use and distribution of inert product samples containing no cannabinoids for patient demonstration exclusively at the pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility, and not for further distribution or sale, without the need for a written certification; (xiii) a process for acquiring industrial hemp extracts and formulating such extracts into cannabis products; and (xiv) an allowance for the advertising and promotion of the pharmaceutical processor's products and operations, which shall not limit the pharmaceutical processor from the provision of educational material to practitioners who issue written certifications and patients. The Board shall also adopt regulations for pharmaceutical processors that include requirements for (a) processes for safely and securely cultivating cannabis plants intended for producing cannabis products, (b) the disposal of agricultural waste, and (c) a process for registering cannabis products.

D. The Board shall require pharmaceutical processors, after processing and before dispensing any cannabis products, to make a sample available from each batch of cannabis product for testing by an independent laboratory that is located in the Commonwealth and meets Board requirements. The provisions of § 4.1-1404 shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to the testing of all cannabis products.

E. A laboratory testing samples for a pharmaceutical processor shall obtain a controlled substances registration certificate pursuant to § 54.1-3423 and shall comply with quality standards established by the Board of Pharmacy in regulation.

F. Every pharmaceutical processor's dispensing area or cannabis dispensing facility shall be under the personal supervision of a licensed pharmacist on the premises of the pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility unless all cannabis products are contained in a vault or other similar container to which only the pharmacist has access controls. The pharmaceutical processor shall ensure that security measures are adequate to protect the cannabis from diversion at all times, and the pharmacist-in-charge shall have concurrent responsibility for preventing diversion from the dispensing area.

Every pharmaceutical processor shall designate a person who shall have oversight of the cultivation and production areas of the pharmaceutical processor and shall provide such information to the Board. The Board shall direct all communications related to enforcement of requirements related to cultivation and production of cannabis and cannabis products by the pharmaceutical processor to such designated person.

G. The Board shall require the material owners of an applicant for a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility permit to submit to fingerprinting and provide personal descriptive information to be forwarded along with his fingerprints through the Central Criminal Records Exchange to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for the purpose of obtaining criminal history record information regarding the applicant's material owners. The cost of fingerprinting and the criminal history record search shall be paid by the applicant. The Central Criminal Records Exchange shall forward the results of the criminal history background check to the Board or its designee, which shall be a governmental entity.

H. A pharmaceutical processor shall maintain evidence of criminal background checks for all employees of the pharmaceutical processor. Criminal background checks of employees and may be conducted by any service sufficient to disclose any federal and state criminal convictions.

I. In addition to other employees authorized by the Board, a pharmaceutical processor may employ individuals who may have less than one year of experience (i) to perform cultivation-related duties under the supervision of an individual who has received a degree in a field related to the cultivation of plants or a certification recognized by the Board or who has at least one year of experience cultivating plants, (ii) to perform extraction-related duties under the supervision of an individual who has a degree in chemistry or pharmacology or at least one year of experience extracting chemicals from plants, (iii) to perform duties at the pharmaceutical processor and cannabis dispensing facility upon certification as a pharmacy technician, and (iv) to serve as pharmacy technician trainees.

J. A pharmaceutical processor to whom a permit has been issued by the Board may (i) establish up to five cannabis dispensing facilities, subject to the permit requirement set forth in subsection B, for the dispensing of cannabis products that have been cultivated and produced on the premises of a pharmaceutical processor permitted by the Board and (ii) establish, if authorized by the Board, one additional location at which the pharmaceutical processor may cultivate cannabis plants. Notwithstanding any other provisions of law, a pharmaceutical processor shall cultivate cannabis only indoors, which may include a secure agricultural greenhouse, with a canopy that does not exceed 70,000 square feet in the aggregate across all cultivation conducted by the pharmaceutical processor, including cultivation authorized under this chapter and for purposes of a pharmaceutical processor's operations as a marijuana cultivation facility pursuant to § 4.1-800, regardless of whether such canopy is utilized on the premises of the pharmaceutical processor or collectively on the premises of the pharmaceutical processor and the additional cultivation location. Each cannabis dispensing facility and the additional cultivation location shall be located within the same health service area as the pharmaceutical processor.

K. No person who has been convicted of a felony under the laws of the Commonwealth or another jurisdiction within the last five years shall be employed by or act as an agent of a pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility.

L. Every pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility shall adopt policies for pre-employment drug screening and regular, ongoing, random drug screening of employees.

M. A pharmacist at the pharmaceutical processor's dispensing area and the cannabis dispensing facility shall determine the number of pharmacy interns, pharmacy technicians, and pharmacy technician trainees who can be safely and competently supervised at one time; however, no pharmacist shall supervise more than six persons performing the duties of a pharmacy technician at one time in the pharmaceutical processor's dispensing area or cannabis dispensing facility.

N. A pharmaceutical processor may acquire from a registered industrial hemp handler or processor industrial hemp extracts that (i) are grown and processed in Virginia in compliance with state or federal law, and (ii) notwithstanding the THC limits set forth in the definition of "industrial hemp extract" in § 3.2-5145.1, contain a total THC concentration of no greater than 0.3 percent. A pharmaceutical processor may process and formulate such extracts into an allowable dosage of cannabis product. Industrial hemp extracts acquired and formulated by a pharmaceutical processor are subject to the same third-party testing requirements that may apply to cannabis plant extract. Testing shall be performed by a laboratory located in the Commonwealth and in compliance with state law governing the testing of cannabis products. The industrial hemp handler or processor shall provide such third-party testing results to the pharmaceutical processor before industrial hemp extracts may be acquired.

O. Product labels for all cannabis products and botanical cannabis shall be complete, accurate, easily discernible, and uniform among different products and brands. Pharmaceutical processors shall affix to all cannabis products and botanical cannabis a label, which shall also be accessible on the pharmaceutical processor's website, that includes:

1. The product name;

2. All active and inactive ingredients, including cannabinoids, terpenes, additives, preservatives, flavorings, sweeteners, and carrier oils;

3. The total milligrams of THC and CBD included in an edible cannabis product or topical cannabis product, the number of milligrams of THC and CBD in each serving of an edible cannabis product or topical cannabis product, and the total percentage of THC and CBD included in an inhalable cannabis product;

4. The amount of product that constitutes a single serving and the amount recommended for use by the practitioner or dispensing pharmacist;

5. Information regarding the product's purpose and detailed usage directions;

6. Child and safety warnings in a conspicuous font; and

7. Such other information required by the Board.

P. A pharmaceutical processor or cannabis dispensing facility shall maintain an adequate supply of cannabis products that (i) contain CBD as their primary cannabinoid and (ii) have low levels of or no THC.

Q. With the exception of § 2.2-4031, neither the provisions of the Administrative Process Act (§ 2.2-4000 et seq.) nor public participation guidelines adopted pursuant thereto shall apply to the adoption of any regulation pursuant to this section. Prior to adopting any regulation pursuant to this section, the Board shall publish a notice of opportunity to comment in the Virginia Register of Regulations and post the action on the Virginia Regulatory Town Hall. Such notice of opportunity to comment shall contain (i) a summary of the proposed regulation; (ii) the text of the proposed regulation; and (iii) the name, address, and telephone number of the agency contact person responsible for receiving public comments. Such notice shall be made at least 60 days in advance of the last date prescribed in such notice for submittals of public comment. The legislative review provisions of subsections A and B of § 2.2-4014 shall apply to the promulgation or final adoption process for regulations pursuant to this section. The Board shall consider and keep on file all public comments received for any regulation adopted pursuant to this section.

2023, cc. 740, 744, 760, 773, 780, 794, 799, 812; 2024, c. 732; 2026, c. 1051; 2026, Sp. Sess. I, c. 1.