Developing a Blockchain Solution for West Virginia Medicinal Cannabis

Developing a Blockchain Solution for West Virginia Medicinal Cannabis

Ludwig Christian Schaupp
DOI: 10.4018/IJSSOE.2019040101
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Abstract

West Virginia became the 29th state in the country to legalize cannabis for medicinal purposes in 2017. Two years later, the state's medicinal marijuana program is scheduled to start enrolling patients; however, state legislators acknowledge that the program is still years behind actual implementation due to obstacles that have become seemingly insurmountable via existing channels. This paper undertakes a holistic evaluation of the value of blockchain to the nascent medicinal marijuana industry in West Virginia. Three use cases are presented to address the difficulties the state has experienced during the program's first two years of rollout efforts. Specifically, a blockchain use case is developed to address the issue of traceability to prove provenance, managing the vertically integrated supply chain and because of federal tax law the particularly cumbersome issue of collecting and storing payments.
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Medicinal Cannabis

Medical cannabis, or medical marijuana, is cannabis and the associated cannabinoids that patients are prescribed to reduce amongst many other things anxiety, chronic pain, nausea and vomiting (Murnion, 2015; Borgelt et al., 2013). Cannabis has been used throughout history in many cultures for medicinal purposes dating back thousands of years (Amar, 2006). Medicinal cannabis can be administered through a variety of methods, including but not limited to capsules, lozenges, edibles, and vaporizing or smoking dried buds.

Presently in the United States (U.S.), thirty-three states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for medicinal purposes (Parker et al., 2019). Because on the federal level medicinal cannabis remains prohibited, the Rohrabacher–Blumenauer Amendment, previously known as the Rohrabacher-Farr Amendment (2014) was enacted which precludes the Department of Justice (DOJ) from using federal funds to prosecute medical marijuana businesses (growers, dispensaries) operating in states where medical marijuana is legal at the state level (Parker et al., 2019).

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