Providence Journal: Which New England state - Rhode Island or Maine - will be the first to open a compassion center or dispensary to legally sell marijuana to patients registered in medical-marijuana programs? It appears that our neighbor to the north will beat Rhode Island to the punch. A spokesman for the Maine Health Department said the first of eight dispensaries across the state should open for business soon after Jan. 1. Over the past two months, the Health Department's Division of Licensing and Regulatory Services has awarded licenses to operate dispensaries in each of the state's eight public health districts.