Do you need a medical card to buy at an Ohio dispensary?
Not if you’re 21 or older: Ohio allows adult-use purchases from licensed dispensaries. If you’re 18 to 20, you can only buy medical marijuana, as a registered patient.
What a medical card adds
- Access from age 18. Adult-use is for people 21 and older.
- No adult-use tax. Ohio charges a 10% tax on adult-use marijuana (Revised Code 3796.40). That tax does not apply to medical marijuana.
- A larger supply. Patients may possess up to a 90-day supply set by state rules. Adult-use consumers may possess up to 2.5 ounces of plant material and 15 grams of extract.
- Legal protections. Ohio protects registered patients in custody decisions, medical care, housing applications and public benefits (Revised Code 3796.24). See what a medical card means.
What stays the same
- You can’t smoke or vape marijuana in public places. Medical marijuana can only be vaporized on private property used mainly as a home or farm, and smoking it is not allowed (Revised Code 3796.06, as amended by SB 56 from 20 March 2026).
- Driving while impaired is illegal for everyone.
- Employers can enforce drug-free workplace policies for patients and adult-use consumers alike.
Home growing
Adults 21 and older can grow up to six plants each, and up to twelve per home, in an enclosed area out of public view (Revised Code 3796.04). A lease can ban it.