About 400 South Dakotans had been issued medical marijuana cards as of last spring, a relatively low number blamed on hesitancy among state-licensed physicians to certify their patients for cannabis use.

Today, more than 7,300 medical marijuana cards have been distributed by the state health office. And that proliferation in the number of South Dakotans legally entitled to use the drug is being blamed on the arrival of “pop-up clinics” that exist for the sole purpose of certifying individuals to participate in South Dakota’s medicinal marijuana program.

“This is what South Dakotans are faced with,” Rep. Fred Deutsch told the House Health and Human Services Committee on Tuesday morning as he pitched a pair of bills intended to stop patients from being certified for medical marijuana at non-traditional clinic locations. Legislation being carried by the Florence Republican also reins in marijuana-related advertising.

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