Since becoming the first state to effectively legalize marijuana for medical purposes in 1996, California has paved the way for weed-related innovations by showing that states with medical marijuana laws have fewer opioid overdoses, and now it's launching a medical marijuana delivery service in San Francisco. California once again hopes to break new ground in the fight for marijuana legalization by launching a new smartphone application service that will make getting a medical marijuana ID card a lot easier.

Currently, getting a medical marijuana card in California entails finding a doctor, paying upward of $100, and waiting around for a couple of weeks before it actually arrives. Illnesses that doctors commonly “approve” or “recommend” marijuana for include “cancer, anorexia, AIDS, chronic pain, spasticity, glaucoma, arthritis, migraine, or any other illness for which marijuana provides relief.” Now a California startup is looking to cut the amount of time spent finding a doctor, waiting for the card to arrive, and the amount of money spent on the card itself.

EazeMD is a new marijuana delivery service that could facilitate patients being approved for medical marijuana use without ever stepping foot inside one of the state’s designated clinics. Once patients are approved following a quick interview over the phone, they are issued a new electronic card and given the opportunity to order their medication and have it delivered in 15 minutes or less. EazeMD would also lower the price of medical marijuana cards from around $100 to $25.

EazeMD
Since its launch in November 2014, EazeMD has raised $12.5 million in funding. Eazeup

“You need to actually send a driver to deliver consumer goods, but there’s no reason you should have to actually dispatch a doctor and it really just streamlines the process,” EazeMD founder Keith McCarty told TechCrunch.

Let’s pump the brakes here for a second. Medical marijuana delivery at the touch of your fingers sounds well and good, but how long before we see this dream come into fruition and what about similar apps already on the market. Although medical marijuana delivery apps, like Meadow, have been around longer than EazeMD, this new platform is the first to facilitate the actual obtainment of a medical marijuana card. So while other apps facilitate the sale of medical marijuana, EazeMD can also help you become a legal medical marijuana card holder.

Even more good news for potential EazeMD users. According to McCarty, EazeMD falls in line with the Medical Board of California’s guidelines for telehealth which states, “There are no legal prohibitions to using technology in the practice of medicine, as long as the practice is done by a California licensed physician.”

EazeMD
Unfortunately, EazeMD is not available on the Apple's App Store just yet. Eazeup

“Telehealth is accepted across 28 states and 23 states have made marijuana for medical reasons legal. It’s accepted across the California Medical Board,” McCarty added.

Finally, let’s talk about the elephant in the room. Will simplifying the process for obtaining a medical marijuana card lead to problems with overuse and use among teens? Contrary to popular belief, most card carrying Californians actually need their medication and take it very seriously. A study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention revealed that over 90 percent of the state’s medical marijuana users claim their medication helps treat a “serious medical condition.”