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Louisiana

CANNABIS DISPENSARY REGULATIONS FOR LOUISIANA

Louisiana operates a medical-only cannabis program. The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) regulates cultivation, product testing, retail permits, and program compliance.

Since January 1, 2025, LDH has served as the primary regulator for the entire program. Retail locations are officially called medical marijuana retailers rather than dispensaries.

Retail Permit Structure

Louisiana limits the market to 10 base retail permits. These permits are distributed across the state’s nine administrative health regions.

Each permit holder may operate up to two satellite locations when regional patient counts meet the required thresholds. State law limits the entire market to 30 retail locations, including satellite stores.

Retail permit holders must also meet several operating requirements:

  • Each business must appoint at least one Louisiana-licensed pharmacist.
  • A pharmacist must be available to employees during operating hours.
  • Patients must have access to a pharmacist by telephone or video conference.
  • Sales must be recorded in the Louisiana Medical Marijuana Tracking System.
  • Retailers may sell only products made by licensed Louisiana manufacturers.
  • Each permit holder must offer delivery throughout its region at least once per month.

LDH currently states that no new base retail permits are available. A permit may become available if an existing operator gives it up or has it revoked.

The annual fee for each base retail permit is $22,500.

Cultivation and Manufacturing Licenses

Louisiana authorizes no more than two medical marijuana manufacturers. The current licensees are:

  • Advanced Biomedics LLC, doing business as Ilera Holistic Healthcare
  • Good Day Farm Louisiana LLC

These businesses previously operated through agreements with Louisiana State University and Southern University. Act 150 of 2024 removed the universities from the production structure and transferred the licenses to their former contractors.

Each manufacturer must pay a $100,000 annual license fee. The state also charges a $10,000 application fee and assesses a fee equal to 7% of gross medical marijuana sales.

Manufacturers must follow rules for cultivation, processing, security, transportation, inventory control, and recordkeeping. Every product batch must pass required testing before it can be released to a retailer.

Patient Eligibility and Recommendations

Patients need a valid recommendation from an authorized Louisiana clinician. The following professionals may recommend medical marijuana when properly licensed and in good standing:

  • Physicians
  • Nurse practitioners with prescriptive authority
  • Medical psychologists

Louisiana law includes several named qualifying conditions. It also allows clinicians to recommend medical marijuana for any other condition they consider debilitating and are qualified to treat.

Recommendations must be based on a legitimate clinician-patient relationship. They must also include an expiration date no more than 12 months after issuance.

Louisiana does not require patients to apply for a separate state medical marijuana card. Retailers verify active recommendations through the state tracking system.

Medical Marijuana Products and Purchase Limits

Louisiana retailers may sell raw cannabis flower and other products authorized by LDH. This means the previous prohibition on flower is no longer accurate.

A retailer may sell a patient no more than 2.5 ounces, or 71 grams, of raw cannabis flower within a 14-day period.

Patients under 21 may obtain flower only when their clinician specifically recommends it. Louisiana does not permit patients or caregivers to grow cannabis at home.

All products must come from a licensed Louisiana manufacturer. Cannabis and cannabis products may not be transferred into or out of the state.

Testing, Tracking, and Security

Louisiana requires cannabis products to move through the Louisiana Medical Marijuana Tracking System. The system records activity from cultivation through the final retail sale.

Licensed businesses must maintain accurate records for:

  • Plants and harvested cannabis
  • Manufacturing and testing activity
  • Wholesale transfers
  • Retail inventory
  • Patient sales
  • Product destruction

Products are tested for potency and contaminants before reaching retailers. Cultivators, laboratories, and retailers are also subject to LDH inspections.

Businesses must maintain security systems, restricted-access areas, inventory controls, and procedures designed to prevent diversion.

Banking and Payment Considerations

Medical cannabis is legal under Louisiana law, but marijuana remains illegal at the federal level. This limits the number of banks and payment providers willing to serve licensed cannabis businesses.

Retailers and manufacturers should use payment services that have reviewed and approved their business model. They should also understand all underwriting requirements, fees, transaction limits, funding schedules, and compliance obligations.

PayRio works with eligible cannabis businesses to build payment infrastructure suited to their operations and regulatory environment. Available services depend on the merchant’s location, financial profile, processing history, and completed underwriting.

Learn more about PayRio’s cannabis payment solutions, explore the markets we serve, or read why payment stability matters more than approval speed.

Contact PayRio to discuss payment processing for a licensed Louisiana cannabis business.

CANNABIS LEGALIZATION HISTORY IN LOUISIANA

Louisiana created its modern medical marijuana framework through Act 261 in 2015. The original program allowed only a narrow range of products and medical conditions.

The state continued building its cultivation and retail system over the next several years. Legal medical marijuana sales began in August 2019.

In 2020, Louisiana expanded patient access. Clinicians gained the authority to recommend medical marijuana for any condition they considered debilitating and were qualified to treat.

Act 424 took effect on January 1, 2022. It authorized raw cannabis flower and established the limit of 2.5 ounces every 14 days.

Two major changes followed in 2024. Act 150 transferred the two cultivation licenses from the university-based structure to the existing private operators. Act 693 transferred retail oversight from the Louisiana Board of Pharmacy to LDH.

The retail transition took effect on January 1, 2025. LDH now regulates manufacturers, laboratories, and medical marijuana retailers.

Effective August 1, 2026, certain healthcare facilities must allow terminally ill patients to use recommended medical marijuana. Facilities may establish storage and documentation rules, and smoking or vaping remains prohibited inside those facilities.

CANNABIS LEGALIZATION STATUS IN LOUISIANA

Current Status: Legal for medical use only

Louisiana law allows:

  • Patients with valid recommendations to purchase medical marijuana
  • Recommendations from authorized physicians, nurse practitioners, and medical psychologists
  • Medical marijuana for any condition an authorized clinician considers debilitating
  • Raw cannabis flower and other LDH-approved products
  • Up to 2.5 ounces of flower every 14 days
  • Cultivation and manufacturing by two licensed operators
  • Sales through permitted retailers and approved satellite locations

Recreational cannabis remains illegal in Louisiana. Home cultivation is also prohibited.

Louisiana maintains a limited-license market with strict rules for production, testing, tracking, security, and retail sales.

LAST UPDATED 9/2/2026 – Laws can be revised and updated frequently, so please keep this in mind.