Health

Medical Marijuana Is Coming to Northern Virginia Next Year

Dalitso in Manassas is one of five facilities that will grow and dispense medical cannabis in Virginia.

Northern Virginia’s first medical marijuana facility Dalitso will open its doors in Manassas next year.

While cultivation centers and dispensaries are completely separate in DC and Maryland, Virginia sites like Dalitso will house every step of the medical cannabis process from seed to sale under a single roof.

Last year, the Virginia Board of Pharmacy approved five of these hybrid facilities (referred to as “pharmaceutical processors“) in each of the state’s health service areas. Dalitso is the only one in Northern Virginia. The other four will be in Bristol, Richmond, Portsmouth, and Staunton.

At the helm is president and Pharmacist-in-Charge Farzana Kennedy, a pharmacist with 20 years of experience in Northern Virginia.

“I’m really focused on my patients that are hesitant to use cannabis because of the stigma that we have,” Kennedy says. “[We are] really wanting to make sure that it’s not a threatening experience, that it’s not a finger pointing experience.”

Registered patients will consult with a clinician in a private area, like any other doctor’s office. But instead of having to trek to Walgreens or CVS after a visit, patients will pick up the recommended CBD and THC-A oils at the built-in pharmacy. The oils will come in a variety of different forms, like tablets and topicals, and will all be manufactured on site.

Dalitso plans to move into their building in December to start growing the plants, Kennedy says.  

Daniella Byck
Lifestyle Editor

Daniella Byck joined Washingtonian in 2022. She was previously with Outside Magazine and lives in Northeast DC.