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First Area Medical Marijuana Dispensary Opens In Lebanon

Ann Thompson
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WVXU
Even an hour before About Wellness Ohio opened in Lebanon, there was a line.

The rush to see which medical marijuana dispensary would be the first to open in Southwest Ohio is over. About Wellness Ohio welcomed customers Tuesday morning, across the parking lot from Walmart, in Lebanon.

Not just anyone can walk in. There's a camera on the door and customers have to show their medical marijuana card proving they have a prescription.

Dayton's John Helpling was one of the first to be served. He is an Army veteran with lingering nerve pain that radiates down into his feet. For a decade he used opioids but now finds CBD oil helps him better than anything else.

Credit Ann Thompson / WVXU
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WVXU
John Helping, who lives in Dayton, had been driving to Columbus and Jackson, Ohio, to get medical marijuana.

"I stay as far away as I can from street drugs. So with Ohio having a medical marijuana program it's a safe alternative. Instead of taking a pill every four to six hours I can have a vape or a tincture," he says.

Alan Benjamin of Cincinnati says the opening of a Lebanon location is welcome news. "I've been to California for dispensaries and Colorado. I've been to four here in Ohio. This is the closest location to my house currently."

Benjamin and others complain about Ohio's price. Customer Jacob Johnson says you can buy 10 ounces in Michigan for the price of one in Ohio: $500. He and others prefer to vape or use the oil to make it last.

About Wellness says all of the company's products are made from marijuana cultivated and processed in Ohio.

Credit Ann Thompson / WVXU
/
WVXU
Mac Amin, About Wellness Ohio Dispensary manager, welcomes customers Tuesday morning.

It's unclear when Cincinnati-area dispensaries including Green Rx in Hartwell and Pharmacann and Verdant Creations in Columbia Township will open. On its website, Verdant Creations listed May 2019 for its 5149 Kennedy Avenue location to open.

Here is a list of businesses awarded dispensary licenses in Southwest Ohio:

  • About Wellness Ohio; 1525 Genntown Dr., Lebanon
  • Cannamed Therapeutics; Raydo Circle, Springfield
  • Cannascend; 300 North Main St., Monroe
  • Cannascend Alternative; 333 Wayne Ave., Dayton
  • Debbie's Dispensary Ohio; 1088 N. High St., Hillsboro
  • Have a Heart Cincy; 8420 Vine St., Cincinnati
  • Harvest of Ohio; 4370 Tonawanda Trail, Beavercreek
  • Pharmacann; 5445 Ridge Rd., Cincinnati
  • 127 OH; Village of Seven Mile
  • Pure Ohio Wellness; 1711 West Main St., Springfield
  • Pure Ohio Wellness; 1875 Needmore Rd., Dayton
  • Schottenstein Aphria; 5604 Airway Rd., Riverside
  • Verdant Creations; 5149 Kennedy Ave, Cincinnati
Ann Thompson has decades of journalism experience in the Greater Cincinnati market and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her reporting.