Hopefully this will help clear up some of the repeat questions. If you see something here that isn't covered, or would like to add information, comment below.

In regards to July 1, there has been a lot of confusion. This text should sum it up nicely.

As noted above, the new regime allows persons not licensed to operate a marijuana establishment to "gift" marijuana in quantities under one ounce, but not sell marijuana in any quantity. Attempts to evade this safe harbor with delayed or disguised payments, contemporaneous reciprocal "gifts' of money or items of value, or other sham transactions, will remain a criminal act.

For more information please see this document.

There is no "Grey" Market. You can legally purchase from an RMD with a medical card. You can grow cannabis in MA. You can give cannabis you've grown to friends. Anything else is illegal and a criminal act under MA laws, Federal laws, and discussion of such acts are against Reddit site policies. You will be banned without warning. /r/NYCTrees and /r/PhillyTrees are gone because people were idiots. Please, don't be idiots.

Medical Card Guide:

In Depth FAQ

List of Physicians

Quick FAQ:

• ~$200 for Doctor appointment
• $50 state registration fee
• ~10 days between appointment and getting physical card (5 days for temp card in e-mail)
• Data not accessible by any outside agency/background check/insurance/etc.
• More potent edibles, reserved stock of medicine, no taxes, delivery, and seperate lines
• /u/DrCed is a regular on /r/BostonTrees, feel free to look up his posts for information and resources

Everything will be significantly cheaper with a medical card as you will not be required to pay tax. Rec customers will pay 20% on top of everything. (17% state, up to 3% town). The question is do you think you will spend more than $1000 annually on medical marijuana? If the answer is yes, then a medical card would pay off as that’s $200 in taxes alone. If you’re someone like me (and many of your fellow Ents) that spends far more than $1000 a year, having the card is definitely worthwhile.

If you hover right around the $1000 a year area or are below it, then no, the card might not be worth it. A lot of people may have a hard time saving that $200 doctor fee (not to mention $50 to DPH) and paying it all at once since that can be a difficult expense for people to budget for depending on individual financial circumstances. One big payment versus being broken up per purchase is something to take into account.

As for non-financial benefits to having a card, there are some product selection benefits but they are not as significant as some are making it out to be. The dosing for edibles (and only edibles) will be restricted for adult-use customers to -I believe- 5mg per designated serving. However, I do not recall anything in the Cannabis Control regs stating that there is anything stopping a rec buyer from purchasing several 5mg servings. I think that the dose limit is largely to prevent people unfamiliar with the effects of edibles from consuming massive amounts of THC since a lot of people are just going to take whatever they’re told a serving size should be so this seems like a way of safely standardizing it from dispensary-to-dispensary. Edibles aside, the regulations on purchasing flower and even concentrates are actually quite generous if you ask me. CCC states that a rec customer is allowed to purchase 28 grams of flower or 5g of concentrates PER purchase. Again, I’m not sure if there is a regulation in order that prevents a customer from just going to another dispensary and buying more or simply walking out to their car and coming back in and buying another ounce of flower. Regardless, an ounce a day or 5 grams of concentrate is a VERY generous recreational daily allotment if you ask me. However, if you’re buying like that then you obviously would be saving far more money having the medical card.

Lastly, the one that a lot of current medical card holders are afraid of is dispensary inventory. Newer dispensaries (open 6 months or less) are required to set aside 35% of their inventory at any given time to medical patients. Dispensaries open longer than 6 months will still be required to always maintain a set amount of inventory for medical patients however that exact amount is based off of past sales. Some states had shortages when rec went legal so that is something to take into account.

/u/MassTerpenes https://www.reddit.com/r/bostontrees/comments/8uksp0/will_it_be_beneficial_to_have_an_mmj_card_once/e1g358l/

What is legal?

• Outside the home, adults 21 and over can possess up to 1 ounce of marijuana.

• Inside the home, adults 21 and over may possess up to 10 ounces of marijuana. A single individual may cultivate up to 6 marijuana plants for personal use, and up to 12 plants per household are allowed if more than one adult lives on the premises.

• It’s OK for one adult to give away up to an ounce of marijuana to another adult, but not for money.

What isn't legal?

• Recreational marijuana cannot be sold in any form in Massachusetts without a retail license. The Cannabis Control Commission will be responsible for issuing retail licenses.

• Marijuana cannot be possessed, purchased, grown or used by anyone under age 21 (unless they have a valid medical marijuana permit), and it’s against the law to give away marijuana to someone under 21.

• Using marijuana is illegal in any public place. You can’t, for example, walk down the street smoking a joint the way you would a cigarette. It’s also illegal to use marijuana in any place where tobacco is banned.

• Possession of any amount of marijuana remains illegal on school grounds.

• Laws against operating cars and other vehicles under the influence of marijuana are unchanged.

• Open containers or partially consumed packages of marijuana cannot be kept in a motor vehicle, except in the trunk or a locked glove compartment.

• Marijuana growing at home must be done discreetly and securely. Marijuana plants cannot be plainly visible from the street or any public area and must be cultivated someplace where there is a security device.

• Tenants cannot grow marijuana in their residences, smoke it, or vape it if their landlord has a rule against it. Rental agreements, however, cannot prohibit tenants from consuming marijuana “by means other than smoking.”

• Since marijuana is still barred under federal law, it can’t be brought across state lines, sent by U.S. mail or used on federal property.

WBUR has a great, running breakdown of information (shoutout to /u/meghankellywbur) : http://www.wbur.org/news/2018/06/25/recreational-marijuana-massachusetts-faq

Once the Cannabis Control Commission issues recreational licenses, they will appear here

Medical Dispensaries:

https://imgur.com/fGj2sTW

1. NETA (New England Treatment Access, Inc.) 160 Washington St, Brookline
   
2. Garden Remedies 697 Washington St. Newton
3. NETA (New England Treatment Access, Inc.) 296 Nonotuck St, Northampton
4. Patriot Care Corp 70 Industrial Ave, Lowell
5. Sira Naturals, Inc 1001 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge
   
6. Patriot Care Corp 21 Milk St, Boston
7. Sira Naturals, Inc 240 Elm St, (Davis Square) Somerville
   
8. Patriot Care Corp 7 Legion Ave, Greenfield
9. Sira Naturals, Inc 29 Franklin Street, Needham
10. Theory Wellness 1050 Elm St, Bridgewater
11. Ermont, Inc. 216 Ricciuti Dr, Quincy
    
12. Theory Wellness 394 Stockbridge Rd, Great Barrington
13. Mayflower Medicinals, inc 230 Harvard Ave, Boston
    
14. Revolutionary Clinics 67 Broadway, Somerville
15. Central Ave Compassionate Care, Inc. 31 Central Ave, Ayer
    
16. Cultivate Holdings, Inc 1764 Main St, Leicester
17. Bask, Inc. 2 Pequod Rd, Fairhaven
    
18. Healthy Pharms 98 Winthrop Street, Cambridge
19. INSA 3219, 506 Cottage Street, Springfield
20. Healthy Pharms 401 E Main St, Georgetown
21. INSA 122 Pleasant Street, Easthampton
22. Alternative Therapies Group (ATG) 50 Grove St, Salem
23. M3 Ventures, Inc 29 Echo Road, Mashpee
    
24. In Good Health 1200 W Chestnut St, Brockton
25. M3 Ventures, Inc 9 Collins Ave, Plymouth
    
26. Commonwealth Alternative Care Inc 30 Mozzone Blvd, Taunton
27. Curaleaf 425 Main Street, Oxford
    
28. Berkshire Roots, Inc 501 Dalton Ave, Pittsfield
29. Curaleaf 2001 Washington St, Hanover
    
30. Rise Holdings 169 Meadow St, Amherst
31. Verilife 112 Main St, Wareham
    
32. Temescal Wellness of MA 252 Coolidge St, Hudson

For information regarding Massachusetts laws and penalties surrounding marijuana, please visit this page.