Insure your pot

Cannabis Coverage

Thinking about opening a medical marijuana dispensary but unsure if it's worth the risk? Thanks to Statewide Insurance Services, a company based in Rancho Cordova, California, dispensary owners can now get coverage for things like workers' compensation, general liability, equipment damage, and plant spoilage.

Mike Aberle, director of Statewide's Medical Marijuana Specialty Division, says he came up with the idea to offer this insurance about two years ago when his stepmother died from ovarian cancer. She didn't use medical marijuana because of the stigma attached to it, but Aberle says the experience taught him a lot. "I didn't even know the industry existed before then," he says. "But I realized they had major insurance problems."

Although medical marijuana is legal in only 14 states, Statewide is offering cannabis coverage in all 50. The hope is that once medical marijuana becomes legal nationwide, insurance can be offered to business owners immediately. According to Aberle, the cannabis program hasn't caused any trouble with his other customers or neighbors. In fact, he reports, "people are excited about it!"