Certification is what our medical practitioner does. It is an online process that confirms you have a qualifying condition to get a medical card.  Registration is what you do. It is an online process that tells the Cannabis Control Commission (CCC) who you are.  Both certification and registration need to be renewed annually.  The renewal dates will differ (from a few days to several months).  Your medical marijuana card has the same expiration date as your registration. To check your certification expiration date log in to patient.massciportal.com or ask the staff at the dispensary when they scan your card. 

Your connection to the medical use of marijuana program requires an active certification, an active registration and an active medical marijuana card.  If one of them expires--or if all three have expired--it is relatively simple to renew them.  Renewing your certification requires a telehealth visit with us to confirm that you still a qualifying condition.  Certification becomes ACTIVE at the time of your visit.  Renewing your registration can be done simply by logging into your account at patient.massciportal.com , choose "renew registration", then follow the prompts.   A one-month temporary will be given and your new card will be mailed to you, arriving in 2-4 weeks. Call us during business hours for registration assistance. 

Our fee for first-time certification is $220.  Our fee for recertification (for patients we have previously seen) is $170.  Registration is designed for patients to do themselves, online.  If you need help with registration, call us during business hours. We don't charge for registration assistance. 

The regulations governing medical marijuana in Massachusetts describe a qualifying condition as one that interferes with activities of daily living (work, family, social, sleep).  Certifying providers must also balance risk and benefit to ensure the most favorable patient outcome. For a list of conditions that we have used to certify patients go to:  Qualifying Diagnoses 

We have a small number of patients aged 18-20 who are usually accompanied by a parent when they first come to see us.  It has made their certification easier.  As registered patients, they are old enough to access marijuana through the state-licensed dispensaries and to be in possession of it, but they are too young to purchase or use marijuana under any other circumstances.  While we recognize the independence of some under-21's, their “in-between” legal status results in a more cautious approach to their certification.  We are not certifying patients under the age of 18.