5 years later, medical cannabis puts down roots in SD

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (KELO) -- It's been five years since South Dakotans legalized medical marijuana.

Since it passed, over 17,000 residents of the state hold a medical marijuana patient card and there are over 200 certified practitioners. In 2020, voters passed Initiative Measure 26, which legalized the use of medical marijuana. Voters approved IM 26 with 69.3% voting “Yes” and 30.7 voting “No.”

When IM 26 passed in 2020, former Governor Kristi Noem said in an ad that the state was committed to starting a medical marijuana program as quickly and responsibly as possible. The first state-licensed medical cannabis dispensary opened two years later in Hartford.

Back in 2022, customer Adam Winckler told KELOLAND News, “The best thing for me has been cannabis. Over the course of a little over a