1/19/15 Rhode Island’s First MMJ Vape Lounge Opens Two entrepreneurs have opened Rhode Island’s first vape lounge, a bold venture in a state with no defined law on such businesses. Kevin Cintorino and Ray Diao opened Elevated, the state’s first lounge that allows MMJ patients to use vaporizers, because they often have a hard time finding places to use their medication, according to the Providence Journal. ChicagoV1 300x150 Rhode Islands First MMJ Vape Lounge OpensVape lounges represent new territory for Rhode Island and some other states that don’t have regulations specifically on these types of businesses. “We want to do everything by the book, so we called the [state] Department of Health and the city, but no one knows how to treat it,” Cintorino told the Providence Journal. Cintorino said the business sells memberships for $65 a year, $34 a month or $4.20 a day. The company was funded on a line of credit from Bank of America, which paid for renovations, and Cintorino has invested as much as $30,000, according to the newspaper. While the roughly 10,000 MMJ patients in the state may now have a designated place to consume their medication, the state has only three dispensaries, the last of which opened in November. Related Stories •Weekly Wrapup: Medical Marijuana Moving Forward in MA + Snapshot of Dispensary Startup Costs •Rhode Island Projections Shed Light on Dispensary Startup Costs, Annual Revenues •Weekly Wrapup: More States to Weigh Legalization + How to Succeed in the Cannabis Business