At the beginning of 2014, when Colorado became the first state to allow the sale of marijuana for recreational use, the whole world was watching. “It was insane,” says Toni Fox, owner of Denver’s 3D Cannabis Center, where the first sale happened. “On January 1, there were close to 200 reporters here. Controlled chaos. It was just packed with reporters.”

But the more successful Colorado’s model is and the more imitation it inspires, the less attention it will get. “Colorado is not going to be the top dog for much longer,” says Kayvan Khalatbari, co-owner of the Denver Relief dispensary. “I think it’s only a matter of time before Colorado really gets overlooked.”

The medical marijuana company New England Treatment Access has received state approval to grow medical marijuana in Franklin and sell it in Northampton.

The Department of Public Health gave NETA its certificate of registration, which allows it to proceed with growing marijuana, on April 3. There will be one final inspection of the dispensary before NETA can begin to sell marijuana.

"We're now in the process of cultivating, and we'll hopefully be serving qualified patients this fall," said Dot Joyce, a spokeswoman for New England Treatment Access.

Massachusetts health officials are streamlining the way the state issues licenses under its Medical Marijuana Dispensary program to prevent delays in treatment for those who qualify for it.

Department of Public Health Commissioner Monica Bharel on Wednesday said the licensing system has been "a confusing, overly lengthy process that has delayed appropriate patients from getting access" to medically needed marijuana.

Under the revised process, the dispensaries will be licensed in a format similar to pharmacies and other health care facilities, she said. The process will set high safety and suitability standards for dispensaries to meet, particularly when it comes to security and background checks, she added.

Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg today described the medical marijuana process in the Bay State as a “total mess,” responding to questions about bureaucratic delays that have prevented the opening of dispensaries.

“The ballot question had a lot of problems in it, it’s been very difficult to implement and doing 30 or so licenses across the commonwealth, it has been very, very hard and it is not good that it has taken this long,” Rosenberg said this morning during an appearance on Boston Herald Radio’s “Morning Meeting” program.

Noting that some medical marijuana dispensaries in Massachusetts are “about ready to open,” Rosenberg slammed the medical marijuana ballot question that was approved by voters in 2012 as an “awkwardly written law.”

BOSTON -- The legalization of recreational marijuana is likely headed to the 2016 ballot, with "no appetite" among state lawmakers to handle the issue first, according to Senate President Stanley Rosenberg.

"There's been conversations and there seems to be no appetite in the Legislature to take up ... recreational marijuana, so you should expect to see it on the ballot in 2016," Rosenberg (D-Amherst) said in an interview on the Boston Herald's internet radio station on Tuesday.

A group called "Bay State Repeal" is seeking to place a question on the ballot, which will requiring drafting language that must be first approved by the attorney general and gathering signatures from voters.

A Boston-based medical marijuana dispensary purportedly hid edibles and vouchers for its products inside plastic eggs over the weekend for an Easter egg hunt around the city. The stunt sparked controversy on Instagram when another weed bakery published pictures of the apparently THC-infused sweets concealed inside one plastic egg, allegedly discovered "with a bunch of little kids hovering around it."

Cannimals Edibles appears to have taken credit for hiding multiple edibles and product vouchers inside an unknown amount of eggs, posting the following message on Instagram Sunday: "To those who are salty that we did a giveaway today, please delete yourself from our [Instagram] page if you don't like our Easter eggs -- FUCK YOU."

BOSTON (CBS) -  One revelation from the Aaron Hernandez trial is that the former Patriots tight end was an avid marijuana user, described by prosecution witness Alexander Bradley as a “chain smoker” of the drug.

With that being said, how did Aaron Hernandez never fail a drug test in the NFL?

The Boston Globe’s Ben Volin tells 98.5 The Sports Hub’s Toucher & Rich it’s actually pretty easy to skirt the league’s drug policy.

Michael Kahn, owner of MCR Labs in Framingham which tests medical marijuana products, with samples waiting to be tested. Daily News Staff Photo / Allan Jung​

NATICK – Meaghan Chalmers hopes to get a jumpstart on a budding new industry in Massachusetts.

The 26-year-old Lynn woman is learning from instructors at Natick’s Northeastern Institute of Cannabis information that will help her have a successful career in an array of businesses forming as a result of Massachusetts’ legalization of medical marijuana.

“There’s going to be a ton of businesses opening up,” Chalmers said. “I want to be in the cannabis industry for the long-term.”

BOSTON - Attorney General Maura Healey detailed her opposition to legalizing marijuana on Monday while distinguishing that stance from her prior support for a voter referendum that decriminalized possession of up to one ounce of the drug.

"I supported the effort to decriminalize small amounts of marijuana a few years ago, and I appreciated the motivation behind that move and ultimately, the law," Healey told Boston Herald Radio. "What I oppose though now is full legalization of marijuana."

BOSTON (CBS) — Some state lawmakers are working on a proposal that would allow the use of recreational marijuana in Massachusetts.

Advocates are planning their own petition right now to put the question to voters next year, but state Sen. Pat Jehlen, D- Somerville has other ideas to avoid a ballot question.

“We think it’s a better idea to do it through the legislative process,” Jehlen told WBZ NewsRadio 1030. “People have to vote yes or no [on the ballot], whereas if you propose a bill in the Legislature, there can be amendments, there can be hearings, and a number of people will have a chance to be heard.”

Massachusetts voters have previously decriminalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana and medical marijuana was approved in 2012.