Kelly Fair
Partner in Dentons' Cannabis and Health Care practicesDentonsKelly Fair is a partner in Dentons' Cannabis and Health Care practices and focuses on regulatory compliance, corporate transactions, corporate governance, and public policy, primarily in the cannabis and hemp industries.
With 18 years of in-house and major law firm experience advising high-growth, disruptor industry companies and boards, Kelly has an understanding and appreciation of the broad range of legal, regulatory, operational and financial considerations involved when working with clients in the cannabis and hemp markets.
Prior to rejoining Dentons, Kelly served as Canopy Growth Corporation's first-ever US General Counsel and Vice President of US and European affairs. There, she managed all of the company’s US and European legal and policy affairs, global mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance and continuous disclosure. While navigating the limitations of US federal and securities laws related to cannabis and hemp-derived products, Kelly helped bring Canopy’s hemp-derived CBD products to market to the US market, including launching Canopy’s Martha Stewart brand. Kelly also developed innovative deal structures that grew the company’s US footprint and built a first-class US business, which led to creation of Canopy's newly formed US-domiciled holding company, Canopy USA, LLC. Within Dentons, Kelly serves as Canopy USA, LLC’s external US General Counsel, providing all legal services to the holding company and its $600M operating assets under management.
Kelly also provides legal counsel to the Commonwealth Project, the primary lobbying organization engaged directly with CMS on the Substance Access BEI program and brings insight into the legislative and regulatory dynamics shaping program expansion.
Covered or Cut Off: Cracking Cannabis Insurance and Patient Access
Insurance remains one of the hardest walls between cannabis and the patients who need it. Despite expanding medical programs, most plans still refuse
Insurance remains one of the hardest walls between cannabis and the patients who need it. Despite expanding medical programs, most plans still refuse to cover cannabis products, leaving patients to pay out of pocket and pushing many toward the illic
Insurance remains one of the hardest walls between cannabis and the patients who need it. Despite expanding medical programs, most plans still refuse to cover cannabis products, leaving patients to pay out of pocket and pushing many toward the illicit market. For dispensary owners, medical professionals, and policymakers, this gap shapes pricing, demand, and trust across the entire sector.
This session confronts the access problem head-on. We
Insurance remains one of the hardest walls between cannabis and the patients who need it. Despite expanding medical programs, most plans still refuse to cover cannabis products, leaving patients to pay out of pocket and pushing many toward the illicit market. For dispensary owners, medical professionals, and policymakers, this gap shapes pricing, demand, and trust across the entire sector.
This session confronts the access problem head-on. We'll map the current reimbursement landscape, examine where coverage is slowly opening, and unpack the regulatory and federal barriers that keep insurers on the sidelines. You'll see how leading operators adapt cannabis retail strategies to serve cost-sensitive patients while staying inside cannabis business compliance lines.
The panelists connect access challenges to broader cannabis market trends, marijuana business funding pressures, and the cannabis industry opportunities emerging as policy shifts. You’ll leave this session with a clear, defensible plan for navigating coverage gaps and expanding patient access.
