ANNAPOLIS, Md. —Medical marijuana is a step closer to becoming reality in Maryland. The names of the top applicants to be licensed to grow and process medical marijuana in Maryland were released Monday.

Earlier this month, the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission approved the top applicants in line for 15 grower licenses and 15 processor licenses. The panel also chose five applicants to be alternates in each category, in case any of the top 15 fail to be licensed after background checks.

Those selected still have to go through another round of reviews and inspections before licenses are granted.

Analysts expect Maryland’s medical marijuana industry to be lucrative for a couple of reasons, including the limited number of licenses and the broad base of potential patients. [Read More @ WBALTV]