Published January 27, 2021 at 6:40 PM MST Listen • 4:52
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Utah will soon have half of its 14 medical cannabis pharmacies open. This story and more in Wednesday evening s news brief.
Wednesday evening, January 27, 2021
State
Utah Sees More Than 2,000 New COVID-19 Cases
The Utah Department of Health reported 2,009 new cases of COVID-19 Wednesday. New cases have generally been falling in recent weeks and the average percent of tests coming back positive is around 18.4%. Seven more people have died but vaccines continue to roll out. More than 37,000 Utahns are now fully vaccinated against the disease.
Caroline Ballard
Utah Receives Split Grades On Its Tobacco Report Card
Utah Investigative Journalism Project
Dr. Andrew Talbott, a Park City physician, is among those concerned that Utah’s medical cannabis law fosters clinics that charge patients upwards of $200 for a brief consultation to help them access the drug while providing limited cannabis education.
Tanzi Propst/Park Record
The following story was written and reported by The Utah Investigative Journalism Project in partnership with The Park Record.
During the first year of Utah’s medical cannabis program, several clinics sprouted to help patients get the required card that allows them to purchase products from the state’s seven dispensaries.
But some worry that these businesses simply serve as “card mills” that overcharge patients but fail to deliver key services. They also blame state lawmakers for designing a program that drives up patient costs.