This site is centered on Pembroke, but Virginia's certification process is the same statewide — wherever you live, the path is identical.
Book an AppointmentPembroke itself has no dispensary, but Virginia Beach is home to Zen Leaf on Birdneck Road, reachable via I-264 or Virginia Beach Boulevard.
Virginia law permits registered patients to have medical cannabis delivered directly from a licensed dispensary — useful if a midday trip isn't practical.
Here's exactly what the process involves, start to finish.
Be a Virginia resident, 18 or older (or have a parent/guardian's consent), with a valid government-issued ID ready.
A CCA-registered physician, physician assistant, or nurse practitioner evaluates you live — Virginia law requires real-time video, not a phone call. No fixed conditions list to match.
If approved, your written certification is issued right away, valid up to a year. That, plus your ID, is enough at any licensed Virginia dispensary the same day.
I booked on a break at work, did the whole visit from my car, and had my certification before I clocked back in.
Practitioner was direct and didn't waste my time. Exactly what I wanted.
Didn't know the state card was optional until this explained it clearly.
Pembroke sits at the intersection of I-264, Virginia Beach Boulevard, and Independence Boulevard — all three routes head toward the resort area where the dispensary is located. Midday tends to move faster than the evening commute out of the business district.
Because Pembroke is Virginia Beach's central business district, a lot of patients here are looking to fit a certification visit around work hours rather than build a day around it. A private space and about fifteen minutes is genuinely all the video visit requires.
Pembroke is Virginia Beach's official Central Business District designation, with Town Center as its urban core, and the residential Thalia neighborhood just across Thalia Creek to the east. The names get used somewhat interchangeably by locals — we serve the broader area rather than drawing a hard line between them.
The land Pembroke sits on was granted to Captain Adam Thoroughgood in 1635. His descendant Elizabeth Thoroughgood later married Jonathan Saunders, who built Pembroke Manor here in 1764 — his grave still stands at Old Donation Church nearby. The area's transformation from colonial land grant to Virginia Beach's downtown is a longer story than most business districts can tell.
This site is built around Pembroke because that's where it's centered, but Virginia's certification process is identical for any resident of the state. If you're just passing through the area for work, you're just as welcome to book as someone who lives here.
Sourced from official CCA program guidance.
A CCA-registered practitioner evaluates you over live video and decides, based on your health history and their own clinical judgment, whether your condition may benefit from cannabis. If approved, a written certification is issued during that same visit, valid up to a year. See the CCA's Patients & Caregivers page.
Not since January 1, 2024. Under Code of Virginia § 54.1-3408.3, any CCA-registered practitioner can certify whatever diagnosed condition they personally believe may benefit from cannabis — there's no fixed government list to check against.
Video is required. Virginia law defines qualifying telemedicine as real-time interactive audiovisual technology — a phone call alone doesn't meet that bar, so a working camera is necessary.
No. The CCA's patient card is optional and separate from purchasing. Your written certification plus a valid ID is all a dispensary needs to see.
Consultation pricing is set by the practitioner platform and shown before booking. The CCA's $50 registration fee is a separate, optional charge that only applies if you choose to register for the state card.
Book another telehealth evaluation before your current certification expires. A successful renewal is valid for another year from that visit.
Physicians (MD/DO), physician assistants, and nurse practitioners, each licensed in Virginia and specifically registered with the CCA for this program. Every practitioner on this platform meets that bar.
Up to 4 ounces within any 30-day period, more than Virginia's general adult limit. Current figures are maintained at the CCA's Patients & Caregivers page.
No. Virginia only recognizes certifications from CCA-registered Virginia practitioners, regardless of what your home state allows.
No. This site is centered on Pembroke, but the underlying process works identically for any Virginia resident, wherever in the state you happen to be.
Pembroke is Virginia Beach's officially designated Central Business District — a 1,200-acre planning area bounded by Thalia Creek, Clearfield Avenue, and the Bonney and Baxter Road corridor, served directly by I-264, Virginia Beach Boulevard, and Independence Boulevard. At its center sits Town Center, the city's mixed-use urban core. For medical cannabis access, Pembroke residents and workers follow the same statewide Virginia process as anywhere else in the state.
Since January 2024, Virginia hasn't maintained a fixed list of qualifying conditions. Under Code of Virginia § 54.1-3408.3, a CCA-registered practitioner certifies patients using their own clinical judgment during a live video visit — Virginia law specifically requires real-time audiovisual telemedicine.
Book a video visit with a CCA-registered practitioner. If approved, a written certification is issued immediately, valid for up to a year. That certification and a government-issued ID are enough to purchase at any licensed Virginia dispensary the same day — the CCA's $50 patient card remains entirely optional. Full detail at the CCA's Patients & Caregivers page.
One video visit stands between you and a Virginia medical cannabis certification.
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