Yes. There are licensed dispensaries catering to Mission residents' cannabis needs, offering either over-the-counter cannabis products or cannabis delivery services. However, only medical marijuana is legal in Texas. The use, cultivation, and sale of marijuana for recreational purposes in the state, including Mission, remains illegal. Consequently, there are no adult-use cannabis dispensaries in Mission.
The City of Mission is home to licensed medical marijuana dispensaries, commonly known as dispensing organizations. The operations of medical dispensaries began in Texas after the state passed the Compassionate Use Act in 2015 to legalize medical cannabis for patients with debilitating health conditions. This Act is deemed restrictive because patients may only consume marijuana-based oil with no more than 1% THC. It established the state's medical marijuana program, popularly known as the Texas Compassionate Use Program (CUP), to enable qualified patients to access low-THC cannabis.
Per Section 487.201 of the Texas Health and Safety Code (HSC), no municipality in Texas may ban the sale of low-THC cannabis in their jurisdictions. Hence, Mission does not prohibit medical dispensaries from operating within its borders. The three licensed dispensaries in Texas sell low-THC marijuana products to qualified patients in Mission, either over the counter or via delivery services.
Yes, but not for recreational purposes. Mission residents enrolled in the CUP can order low-THC cannabis products online from any of the three Texas-licensed dispensaries. These dispensaries are allowed by state law to deliver online orders of low-THC marijuana products to patients' local addresses in any part of the state, including Mission. Delivery employees will request to see patients’ valid government-issued IDs at the point of delivery to ensure they are making such deliveries to the right patients.
Before visiting a medical cannabis dispensary in Mission, a patient must contact their physician (who must be licensed in Texas) to enter a prescription Compassionate Use Registry of Texas (CURT). CURT is a state-developed system that enables Texas-licensed physicians to enroll qualified patients in the Compassionate Use Program and enter patients' low-THC cannabis prescriptions.
Once they confirm that a prescription has been entered in CURT, the patient can visit any licensed dispensary in Mission with their valid government-issued ID and fill them. Typically, an attending dispensary staff will request the patient's date of birth, last five digits of their SSN (social security number), and last name, in addition to their valid ID. After providing the required information, the dispensary employee will search the CURT for any matching information and fill the patient's low-THC marijuana prescription.
Mission dispensary laws include the following:
No licensed dispensary in Mission may sell cannabis for recreational purposes
Marijuana dispensaries must always verify that patients' prescriptions were entered in the CURT before dispensing low-THC cannabis products. They must also ascertain that other dispensaries did not already fill patients' prescriptions before selling medical cannabis to them
Per Section 12.7(n) of the Low-THC Cannabis Program Administrative Rules, no licensed dispensary in Mission must be sited within 1,000 feet of any school or daycare center
No cannabis dispensary may operate in Mission without obtaining a license from the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS). Licensed cannabis dispensaries must comply with the DPS rules and regulations at all times
The use, purchase, cultivation, processing, and sale of cannabis for recreational purposes is illegal in Mission in compliance with Texas marijuana laws.
In Mission, medical marijuana patients may only use low-THC cannabis products (marijuana-derived products with 1% THC or less). Texas marijuana law prohibits cannabis patients from cultivating marijuana plants at home for personal use. Only Texas permanent residents enrolled in CUP can fill their low-THC prescriptions in dispensaries located in Mission. Hence, no Texas-licensed dispensary in Mission may dispense low-THC cannabis products to out-of-state medical cannabis patients. According to Section 169.001 of the Texas Occupation Code, smoking medical cannabis publicly in Texas, including Mission, is prohibited. Additionally, driving while under the influence of cannabis is illegal, even for registered medical cannabis patients.
The Texas Compassionate Use Program (CUP) does not issue medical marijuana cards like other states with established medical marijuana programs. Patients who qualify for medical cannabis (low-THC cannabis) in Mission and wish to enroll in the CUP must take the following steps:
Engage licensed physicians authorized to prescribe low-THC cannabis
The physicians will ascertain their eligibility and register them in the Compassionate Use Registry of Texas (CURT) free of charge
After a patient's registration, they can fill their low-THC cannabis prescription entered by their physician in the CURT at any Texas-licensed dispensary in Mission.
Consuming medical cannabis (low-THC cannabis products) in one's private residence in Mission is safe and considered legal. Texas prohibits the public consumption of medical cannabis.
Dispensaries in Mission are only licensed to sell low-THC cannabis products, not adult-use marijuana. Mission residents enrolled in the CUP must contact their physicians to enter their low-THC prescriptions in the CURT, without which they cannot visit any dispensary or purchase low-THC from licensed dispensaries. After confirming their prescriptions entry in the CURT, patients may visit licensed dispensaries in Mission to fill them.
While the price may vary by the dispensary, the cost of high-grade cannabis in Mission is about $311 per ounce.
The most popular strains of cannabis sold by dispensaries in Mission are those with low THC content, usually not more than 1% THC, in compliance with Texas requirements for the CUP. They include Cherrywine, ACDC, Lifter, Sour Space Candy, and Elektra.
No, smoking medical cannabis in public is prohibited in Mission. It is punishable with severe penalties under Texas marijuana laws.
Texas cannabis laws permit qualified and registered cannabis patients to possess up to 2.5 ounces of low-THC cannabis within a 14-day period. Sometimes, a patient's physician may authorize them to carry higher amounts if they believe that the patient's medical condition requires more than 2.5 ounces within 14 days. It is illegal to possess even the smallest amount of adult-use cannabis in Mission.
No, because it is a federal offense to ship cannabis into Mission. Marijuana is still a controlled substance at the federal level, and federal laws prohibit moving it across state lines.
Yes, Texas marijuana laws do not ban ordering low-THC cannabis online in Mission. Any patient whose physician has already entered their prescription in the CURT can fill their prescription using the online menu option on any Texas-licensed dispensary website. Patients must provide their IDs for identity verification when the delivery employees arrive at their local addresses.
No Texas law specifies the daily operating time of licensed dispensaries in Mission, including cannabis delivery services.
Tourists can not use dispensaries in Mission because Texas-licensed dispensaries are solely for permanent residents enrolled in the CUP. Texas does not practice medical cannabis reciprocity.
Registered cannabis patients do not need IDs to refill their low-THC cannabis prescriptions at Mission dispensaries unless cannabis products are delivered to them at home. Dispensaries only need patients to provide certain information to enable them to confirm their prescriptions in the CURT.
Mission residents can check Texas-licensed dispensaries' websites for customer reviews to enable them to determine the best dispensaries in Mission. Reviews will hold information regarding dispensaries' service quality and their products.
Dispensary employees may scan customers' IDs when delivering low-THC cannabis products at their local addresses in Mission.
The three licensed dispensaries in Texas operate in Mission by providing either over-the-counter sales services, cannabis delivery services, or both.
Dispensaries in Mission cannot take credit cards because of the federal ban on marijuana activities.
Texas marijuana laws do not specify the number of dispensaries a person can visit in one day.
No. Health insurance cannot cover payments for low-THC cannabis at dispensaries in Mission because marijuana remains banned at the federal level.
Yes. Dispensaries in Mission record every patient's low-THC prescription filled in the Compassionate Use Registry of Texas (CURT) as required by state cannabis law.
Eligible cannabis patients enrolled in the CUP can enter dispensaries in Mission at 18. However, they must have valid low-THC prescriptions in the CURT.
The Mission cannabis regulator's contact information is hosted online on the DPS website.
The Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) urges the public to report all illegal cannabis activities in Mission by calling (844) 643-2251. Alternatively, Mission residents can report such unlawful activities to the Mission Police Department at (956) 584-5000.