How KindlyMD is Changing the Way Utah Patients Access Medical Cannabis
If you’re a medical cannabis patient in Utah, you know the drill. One doctor for your regular health concerns, another for your cannabis card — and a bill for both. Insurance? Forget it. You pay out of pocket, get your card, and move on.
That could change — at least on paper. Effective July 1, a new law established a single unified title for cannabis-recommending providers: Registered Recommending Medical Provider (RMP). In theory, any licensed Utah provider can now complete a few hours of cannabis-specific training and start recommending to their own patients.
But in practice? Most doctors still steer clear. Federal prohibition, lingering stigma, and lack of institutional support mean many providers aren’t ready to integrate cannabis into their regular practice — even though the state now allows it.
That gap is where KindlyMD has built its niche. What if your cannabis doctor was also your primary care provider? What if insurance could actually pick up part of the tab? That’s the model Tim Pickett designed — and it’s been a long road from idea to reality.
When Utah voters passed Prop 2 in 2018, it cracked the door open for legal cannabis access. But the system that followed kept it in its own lane, separate from traditional healthcare. Because of federal law, insurance companies wouldn’t cover cannabis-specific visits, forcing patients into extra appointments and extra bills.
Most clinics focused on speed — issuing cards quickly and moving patients in and out. That got people legal access but often left their broader medical needs untouched. Pickett saw an opening — not to compete with those clinics, but to create something more complete.
A board-certified physician assistant with a background in hospital medicine, critical care, surgery, and emergency medicine, Pickett launched UtahMarijuana.org in January 2020 to help patients get certified. It worked, but he wanted more for them.
“I realized we needed to take insurance,” Pickett says. “The Holy Grail for medical cannabis is to find legitimacy and integrate it into the traditional medical system. That meant building an algorithm that allowed us to do just that.”
To make it happen, he rebranded as KindlyMD, built relationships with major insurers, and designed a model that works within the law. The key? The clinic doesn’t bill insurance for the cannabis card itself — they bill for the healthcare visit. The state still issues the card, but the appointment is treated like any other covered medical visit.
Today, Pickett says, “We cover more than 95% of insured Utah medical cannabis patients under our Complete Care Program.”
At KindlyMD, a cannabis consultation isn’t a quick signature. Patients are seen by physician assistants or nurse practitioners for 15–20 minutes, and often by a behavioral health clinician like a licensed social worker or psychologist in the same visit.
“We integrate mental healthcare at the same time,” Pickett explains. “We might be refilling blood pressure medication, renewing cannabis access, and addressing stress and anxiety — all in one appointment.”
This integrated approach means patients walk away with a personalized plan that may include cannabis, but also traditional prescriptions, therapy referrals, or lifestyle changes. Cannabis isn’t an outlier — it’s part of the medical toolbox.
What started with a single office has grown to multiple locations, including clinics in Ogden (inside the Ogden Regional Medical Center campus), Murray, and a Provo site focused solely on cannabis card evaluations.
KindlyMD’s research shows that nearly 88% of their patients reduce use of prescription drugs, illicit drugs, and alcohol after entering the program — a figure that ties directly into Pickett’s mission to combat Utah’s opioid crisis.
Last year, KindlyMD went public on the NASDAQ — a rare move for a Utah-based, cannabis-adjacent healthcare provider. For Pickett, it’s another step toward normalizing cannabis in mainstream medicine.
“We don’t have to see every patient,” he says. “We just want every patient to be seen, heard, and taken care of. The more clinics that adopt this model, the better it is for everyone.”
Until federal law changes, barriers remain — from insurance limits to stigma — and the RMP rule change doesn’t automatically mean your family doctor will start talking about cannabis. But clinics like KindlyMD are proving what’s possible now: cannabis treated like medicine, integrated into traditional care, and at least partly covered by insurance.
It’s not just about saving patients money. It’s about legitimacy. It’s about making sure cannabis sits at the same table as every other treatment option.
As Pickett puts it, “This is what’s best for patients.” And in a state still finding its footing with medical cannabis, it’s exactly the kind of forward motion the industry needs.
