Mixed welcome for Pennsylvania's 1st medical marijuana dispensary
“Medical cannabis has been a godsend for me."
— -- When Pennsylvania's first ever medical marijuana dispensary, Keystone Canna Remedies, opened its doors in Bethlehem on January 17, many welcomed its arrival with open arms, including former Philadelphia Flyers winger Riley Cote.
During his eight years playing professional hockey, Cote took a beating on the ice and he has found that medical marijuana works wonders with his chronic pain.
"Medical cannabis has been a godsend for me," Cote told ABC affiliate WPVI.
But not everyone is mellow with the arrival of the pot dispensary.
Some Lehigh Valley residents are skeptical and decry a lack of consultation before the clinic opened, WPVI reported.
"I'm not happy with it. We have a pretty safe neighborhood. There [has] been a little bit of crime here but now I'm concerned," Linda Schultz told the station.
Officials with the business hope the community comes to see it as the equivalent of a pharmacy or a medical practice.
"Take the opportunity to educate yourself on what does exist currently." Bradley Carlson, the Pharmacy Director of Keystone Canna Remedies told WPVI. "The literature, the anecdotal evidence, which is overwhelming. Cannabis, marijuana, is medicine."