Beyond the health concerns, there’s still the question of marijuana’s legality. The federal government, together with states, regulates banks, insurance companies, and other financial companies, and still classifies marijuana as a dangerous drug.
As a result, “almost anything that has to do with financial services can be an issue,” said Taylor West of the National Cannabis Industry Association, a nonprofit group that advocates for marijuana businesses. Marijuana dispensaries and other businesses have the hardest time getting bank accounts, West said, but individuals can run into trouble, too. Banks have closed the accounts of pot entrepreneurs and employees, who can also have problems getting mortgages, she said.
Retirement plan providers and payroll companies can be leery of customers associated with marijuana. West's group went through a number of 401(k) providers before finding one that was willing to take its employees' retirement savings. Firms were scared off by the word "cannabis" in the group's name, West said, even though the organization does public advocacy, not pot cultivation or sales.
While health insurance companies operate very differently from life insurers, they can also be reluctant to deal with marijuana businesses. Employees at a Terra Tech subsidiary in California are going without health benefits because, Peterson said, he hasn't yet found an insurer willing to take them as clients.
Peterson is never sure what kind of reaction to expect from a financial or insurance company. A salesperson might be enthusiastic to sign up Terra Tech as a new customer, but isn't clear how much his or her bosses know or whether the firm’s compliance department would object, he said.
“Are we getting the full buy-in from management? If we’re not, that’s a risk,” Peterson said. “It’s a precarious situation to be in.”
Marijuana users might find it easier than employees or entrepreneurs, like Peterson, to hide their hobby from insurers. But Worters, of the Insurance Information Institute, warns of the risks. Lying on an insurance application, or in an insurance medical exam, is fraud. And, she noted, if you die and the insurance company later discovers you’ve been dishonest, it could reduce or cancel the death benefit.