Iowa Patient FAQs

NuggMD Iowa connects prospective patients with state-licensed medical cannabis doctors so you can get your required medical evaluation fast, easy, and online from the comfort and privacy of your own home.

Browse our full list of patient FAQs, or contact our customer service team for one-on-one support.

Any Iowa resident with a debilitating medical condition can become part of the state's medical marijuana program. Minors won't apply directly. Instead, their parents or guardians will apply for them. All minor or adult patients must receive an evaluation and approval from a state-licensed doctor to see if their debilitating medical condition qualifies for cannabis treatment. If approved, the patient must apply to the state and receive approval before they can begin using medical cannabis.

Iowa lists the following qualifying conditions for patients seeking a medical cannabis card.

• AIDS or HIV as defined in Iowa Code, section 141A.1
• Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
• Cancer with severe or chronic pain
• Cancer with nausea or severe vomiting
• Cancer with cachexia or severe wasting
• Chronic pain
• Corticobasal degeneration
• Crohn’s disease
• Multiple sclerosis with severe and persistent muscle spasms
• Parkinson’s disease
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
• Seizures, including those characteristic of epilepsy
• Severe, intractable autism with self-injurious or aggressive behaviors
• Ulcerative colitis
• *Any terminal illness with a probable life expectancy of under one year and severe or chronic pain
• *Any terminal illness with a probable life expectancy of under one year and nausea or severe vomiting
• *Any terminal illness with a probable life expectancy of under one year and cachexia or severe wasting

*Note: Conditions marked with an asterisk* immediately qualify for a waiver of the 4.5g THC limit per 90 days. Other conditions may qualify for a waiver but will require a follow-up evaluation following attempted treatment with the 4.5g THC limit first.

For now, getting an Iowa medical marijuana card is the only way to legally use cannabis in the state, though there are other benefits for Iowa med card holders. A bill is pending to legalize recreational cannabis, but there is staunch resistance to its passage. The effort will benefit if citizens inform their legislators of their support for the measure.

NuggMD offers low-cost, no-risk evaluations for your Iowa medical card, and you'll never be charged if you don't qualify for cannabis treatment. If you're approved, you will also be responsible for the $100 state application fee.

The state renewal cost for a medical marijuana card in Iowa is the same as the initial cost: $100.

Patients are also responsible for their renewal evaluation, available at NuggMD at our same low cost. And with NuggMD, you'll never be charged if you don't qualify for cannabis treatment.

Because cannabis is federally illegal, health insurance companies won't cover the cost of cannabis products yet. This is likely to change soon, however, because several states are advancing measures that would require medical insurance companies to cover medical cannabis.

An Iowa medical marijuana card is valid for 12 months after the date it is issued.

To get a medical marijuana card in Iowa, an individual must first obtain a recommendation for medical cannabidiol from an eligible practitioner. After the correct forms have been filled out and signed, the patient must apply online through the Iowa Office of Medical Cannabidiol.

If you don't have a qualifying condition, you're not eligible. But you can change this with approval from the board. Any Iowa state resident can petition the Iowa Medical Cannabidiol Board to add their medical condition to the state’s list of qualifying conditions.

No. You can't get a medical marijuana card in Iowa without an Iowa-issued ID or driver's license. You'll be required to upload a photo of your ID if you apply online or provide a readable photocopy of it if you apply via mail. For a full list of documents needed for an Iowa medical marijuana card, please see Iowa's Department of Public Health adult patient registration application instructions.

In Iowa, MMJ evaluations can be conducted by:

• - Physicians (MD/DO),
• - Physician Assistants (PAs),
• -Advanced Registered Nurse Practitioners (ARNPs), and
• -Podiatrist.

Dentists can't recommend cannabis.

It only takes 24 to 48 hours to receive your PDF certification, and sometimes patients receive their certs on the same day. Once the state application is complete, the state has up to two weeks to approve it. Once approved, they'll send a temporary card via email that can be used while the permanent card arrives in the mail.

Absolutely! You have the right to see any Iowa state-licensed MD or DO for your medical marijuana renewal evaluation. All NuggMD physicians are licensed in the state for which they provide evaluations and have acquired all state-required cannabis training and certifications from their respective states.

With NuggMD, you are ONLY charged for your evaluation if you are approved. We believe everyone deserves access to a qualified medical cannabis doctor, and the cost of an evaluation shouldn’t be a barrier.

If you need to replace your Iowa medical marijuana card, you can contact the state MMJ program.

You can reach out to the Iowa Office of Medical Cannabis by phone at:

(515) 281-7689

You can also send an inquiry on their website here.

You’ll only be charged if you’re approved for your medical marijuana certification. If not, your evaluation is free! If you sign up and pay for your evaluation, but then cancel before your evaluation, there is a small $10 fee for the payment processing. Once you’ve been approved and issued your certification, a refund for services will no longer be available. Please send an email to support@nuggmd.com with the subject line “Refund Request” and a brief description of your issue. We want to make sure you’re 100% satisfied with your purchase being that you, the customer, are the most important thing to us! Once a refund has been initiated, please allow 3-5 business days for the funds to transfer back to the card you used for the transaction. If any issues arise, please feel free to reach back out for further assistance.

While medicinal use of marijuana is technically legal in Iowa, it places many restrictions on the kinds of marijuana products allowed. Iowa med patients can use tablets, capsules, liquids, tinctures, sublingual, topical gels, lotions, transdermal patches, nebulizers, vaporizers, and suppositories.

Most notably, the state does not allow medical patients to use smokable marijuana products like flower, joints, or concentrates. In addition, edible marijuana products, such as gummies or brownies, are still illegal.

Learn more about Iowa's cannabis laws and regulations.

No, patients are not permitted to smoke products, but they can use vaporizers.

Hours of operation vary by dispensary and day. No dispensaries in Iowa are open before 10 am or after 7 pm currently.

Patients can purchase cannabis from any one of Iowa's licensed dispensaries.

MMJ patients can purchase up to 4.5 grams of THC per 90 days. Patients who need a higher limit may be able to obstain a waiver to purchase more after trying the original limit first. Patients with certain terminal illnesses can receive a purcahse limit waiver during their first evaluation.

MMJ patients can possess a 90-day supply as recommended by their physician.

There aren't any established delivery programs in the state yet.

Recreational cannabis isn't legal in Iowa yet.

Recreational cannabis isn't legal in Iowa yet.

Iowa hasn't legalized recreational cannabis yet.

No. You may only use cannabis on private property, such as your home.

No, there are no cannabis consumption lounges in Iowa?

You can drive your cannabis home after purchasing it, but it is illegal in all states to use cannabis while driving. Driving under the influene of cannabis will result in a DUI

Iowa hasn't legalized recreational cannabis yet.

Iowa doesn't allow home cultivation of cannabis.

Iowa does not have reciprocity laws, but it will allow out-of-state patients to use allowable medical cannabis products in Iowa.

Whether or not Iowa patients are allowed to use or purchase medical marijuana in other states depends on the states they are visiting. Contact the state's medical marijuana programs to learn more about local reciprocity laws.

Out-of-state patients are not permitted to purchase from an Iowa dispensary, but they are allowed to possess and use cannabis.

This depends on the state to which you’re traveling. Each state has different rules regarding reciprocity, and some don’t allow it at all. Check with your destination state to learn more.

In the case of Iowa, the problem isn't so much that a municipality would ban cannabis licenses as the state doesn't allow enough licensed producers. Legislative efforts are underway to address this problem.

You can find instructions to sign up as a medical cannabis caregiver in Iowa at the Iowa Department of Health Patient and Caregiver information page.

Iowa defines a caregivers as "a person, who is:

• -a resident of Iowa or bordering state,
• -including but not limited to a parent or legal guardian,
• -at least eighteen years of age,
• -who has been designated by a patient's health care practitioner as a necessary caretaker taking responsibility for managing the well-being of the patient with respect to the use of medical cannabidiol.

Iowa defines a bordering state as: Illinois, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, South Dakota, or Wisconsin.

The state regulations don't restrict caregivers with criminal records.