Target Date Set For Broome Medical Marijuana Dispensary

Vireo Health of New York is continuing work on its planned Southern Tier site where it will fill prescriptions for medical marijuana.

Speaking on WNBF Radio's Binghamton Now program Thursday, company CEO Ari Hoffnung said he expects Vireo's Broome County location will be able to open by the end of this month.

Hoffnung said the company is working on interior renovations and a video surveillance system for the site. He said his hope is that "we will open Johnson City in the month of January."

The company's first New York patient center opened Thursday in White Plains. Three other sites in the state are to start operations in the next few weeks.

Hoffnung said the Harry L. Drive site will start out "really lean" with a small staff at the outset.

Patient accessibility to medical marijuana is one issue Hoffnung would like to see addressed in the future. He said Vireo might look to explore the possibility of delivering the drug to some of the state's more sparsely populated area.

New York is the 23rd state to authorize the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. California in 1996 became the first state to permit medical marijuana.