The state's pot dispensaries took in $23.6 million as the social stigma faded and more patients seeking relief from chronic pain tried the drug.

Mainers spent $23.6 million on medical marijuana from dispensaries last year, a 46 percent increase driven by multiple factors, including patients seeking alternatives to prescription painkillers and more doctors certifying people to use the drug, according to dispensary operators.

Operators say the increase in sales illustrates the growing willingness of patients and doctors to consider alternatives to traditional medicine, and a reduction in the social stigma surrounding the use of medical marijuana.

And … about-face

After 40+ years of promoting a world-class disaster via the War on Drugs, and brainwashing school-aged kids into believing that marijuana use leads to a life of impending doom, educators in Auburn, Maine, will now be allowed to provide access to marijuana’s beneficial cannabinoids for students who have obtained a doctor’s recommendation.

Absolved and available

PORTLAND, Maine (AP) — A cancer patient in New Hampshire who took her home state to court to get a medical marijuana card got her medicine in Maine on Friday.

New Hampshire approved use of marijuana by people suffering from certain conditions more than two years ago, but the first dispensaries aren't open yet. Linda Horan, who has late-stage terminal lung cancer, successfully argued in court that she might not live long enough to see them open.

A judge had ruled last month she could seek to buy in Maine.

AUBURN — The School Committee approved the first reading of a new policy Wednesday night that would allow students to have medical marijuana administered in school under a physician's orders and under certain conditions.

Any medical marijuana would have to be approved by a physician, and it would have to be administered in school by a parent or guardian, Assistant Superintendent Michelle McClellan said. Because medical marijuana is allowed under a certificate from a physician but not a prescription, nurses may not administer the drug.

Marijuana doses would have to be in a nonsmoking form, such as being edible.

WASHINGTON, DC — U.S. Solicitor General, Donald Verrilli Jr., issued a statement Wednesday advising the Supreme Court not to hear a lawsuit Nebraska and Oklahoma filed against Colorado’s marijuana legalization law last December.

A working group convened by the Legislature has recommended the state establish an official blood-level limit to determine when someone is driving under the influence of marijuana.

Group members were split, however, on what level of THC in the blood would show impairment, with some members saying the scientific community is divided on the issue and uncertainty could lead to false convictions.

The working group was convened by the Legislature’s Joint Standing Committee on Criminal Justice and Public Safety in response to a bill submitted by the secretary of state that proposed making the operating of a vehicle while having a THC level of 5 nanograms or more per milliliter of blood a criminal offense.

BELFAST, Maine — The Waldo County courthouse appeared to be bursting at the seams Friday morning with medical marijuana growers and activists who came out to support two of their own — Randy and Margot Hayes, a Montville couple facing charges of felony drug trafficking and misdemeanor marijuana cultivation.

The Hayeses, whose 57 medical marijuana plants were seized by agents of the Maine Drug Enforcement Agency in August, pleaded not guilty in their initial appearance before Judge Patricia Worth at Waldo County Unified Court.

The judge expressed displeasure with some supporters who crowded into the courtroom during the brief hearing — one man’s phone rang, and others were talking during proceedings.

PARIS — A crowdfunding campaign has been launched to pay for the legal defense of a Paris medical marijuana caregiver who had his operation raided and his crop burned by the Police Department.

Richard Jackson, 48, of King Hill Road, was indicted in October 2015 — more than a year after the raid seized roughly $500,000 worth of marijuana — on one count of unlawful possession of scheduled drugs and one count of marijuana cultivation.

Jackson has been a licensed medical marijuana caregiver with the state of Maine since 2010 and "has provided a great benefit to members of his community by producing and providing high-quality medications to qualified patients," according to a Nov. 1, 2015, letter from his attorney, Gregory Braun.

CONCORD, N.H. — A woman with late-stage lung cancer can seek to buy medical marijuana in Maine before dispensaries open in New Hampshire, a judge ruled Tuesday.

New Hampshire lawmakers approved the use of marijuana by people suffering from a limited number of diseases and medical conditions more than two years ago, but the first four dispensaries won’t open until next year. Linda Horan, 64, says she might be dead by then and sued the state in hopes of getting an identification card that would allow her to purchase marijuana in Maine instead.