The first Cannabis lounge opens in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines

The island's first Cannabis lounge has opened in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, on the beachfront of the Coconut Grove Beach club.

«Today, we are launching Greenhouse Café, which is a cannabis consumption lounge, the first of its kind in St. Vincent and the Eastern Caribbean,» said Marie Helene Tremblay, general manager of Medicinal, a St. Vincent-based medical cannabis company. Her goal: «to provide access to cannabis and [facilitate its access]».

«Once the patient has a prescription for medical cannabis, He can go to the Medical Cannabis Authority to obtain his cannabis card, valid for one year in Saint-Vincent,» said Marie-Hélène Tremblay.

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At the dispensary, patients can buy everything from a €5 THC pre-roll to a €70 CBD tincture and vape pens.

Dr. Jose Davy, a government infectious disease specialist present at the inauguration, said that most of the patients she saw at the event complained of chronic pain, mainly arthritis. She is considering the use of medical cannabis for her patients when conventional medicines have not worked.

Tessa Glass, owner of Coconut Grove, explains that patients can complete the entire process on site.

«We've tried to simplify the process as much as possible for the public, so you can get your prescription from a doctor here, meet a doctor in the privacy of one of the cabins over there. Then you can pick up your prescription and consume on the spot. And you can also get your cannabis card from the medical authority.»

Among those present at the launch, Minister of Agriculture and Industry Saboto Caesar stressed that he was there «purely as an observer, not as a participant.»

The island legalized medical cannabis in 2018, in a common movement of Caribbean countries to at least legalize medical cannabis.