The New York State Department of Health announced Friday the five organizations that have been awarded licenses to manufacture and dispense medical cannabis in The Empire State:
Bloomfield Industries Inc.Columbia Care NY LLCEmpire State Health SolutionsEtain LLCPharmaCann LLCThese five companies were selected out of 43 applicants. According to the DOH, "A combination of weighted scored criteria and other criteria were assigned to a number of areas and evaluated."
Among the criteria listed on the DOH website were:
the ability to manufacture approved medical marijuana products, each with a consistent cannabinoid profile (the concentration of total tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and total cannabidiol (CBD) will define the brand), and each able to pass the required quality control testing as further described in 10 NYCRR § 1004.11;the ability to produce sufficient quantities of approved medical marijuana products, as further described in 10 NYCRR § 1004.11, as necessary to meet the needs of certified patients;the ability to maintain effective control against diversion of marijuana and medical marijuana products as further described in 10 NYCRR § 1004.13;the ability to comply with all applicable state and local laws and regulations;that, if selected, the applicant is ready, willing, and able to properly carry on the activities set forth in 10 NYCRR Part 1004;possession of, or the right to use, sufficient real property, buildings, and equipment to properly carry on the activity described in its operating plan, or in the alternative, the applicant has posted a bond in the amount of $2,000,000;that it is in the public interest that such registration be granted to the applicant;that the applicant's four proposed dispensing facilities are geographically distributed. To be geographically distributed, the proposed dispensing facilities of an applicant must be located in multiple counties across New York State to best serve certified patients in the Medical Marijuana Program state-wide. Geographic distribution will not be demonstrated by the applicant if the proposed dispensing facilities of the applicant are all concentrated in counties of New York State that are neighboring or in close proximity.the moral character and competence of board members, officers, managers, owners, partners, principal stakeholders, directors, and members of the applicant's organization;the applicant's proposed operating plan and suitability of the proposed manufacturing and dispensing facilities, including but not limited to the suitability of the location and the architectural and engineering design of the proposed facilities; andthe applicant has entered into a labor peace agreement, as defined in PHL § 3360(14), with a bona-fide labor organization that is actively engaged in representing or attempting to represent the applicant's employees.
Evaluation Scored Criteria
The following categories were included in the scored criteria:
Product ManufacturingSecurityTransportation and DistributionSales and DispensingQuality Assurance and StaffingReal Property and EquipmentGeographical DistributionArchitectural DesignFinancial StandingMiscellaneous
labor peace agreement;statement demonstrating that applicant is able to comply with all applicable state and local laws and regulations relating to the activities in which it intends to engage under the registration;timeline demonstrating the estimated timeframe from growing marijuana to production of a final approved product; andpublic interest 
