Sep 13 2023

Colorado: Over $22 Million in Taxes Made from August Marijuana Sales, $187 Million Year-to-Date

Colorado marijuana sales brought in over $22 million in tax revenue in August.

Data released by the Colorado Department of Revenue shows that the state made $22,861,745 in tax revenue from the legal distribution of marijuana. This is a modest increase over the $22.4 million in taxes made in July, and the $22.1 million made in June. However, it does fall short of the $24,323,079 made in April, the high so far for the year.

Colorado’s year-to-date marijuana tax total is now $187,515,080. The total since the start of legal sales in 2014 is $2,531,551,769.
Continue reading

Sep 12 2023

Over $28 Million in Marijuana Sold in August in Montana, a New Monthly Record

For the second straight month Montana set a record for the most marijuana sold.

Licensed marijuana store sold $28,697,312 worth of marijuana and marijuana products in August, according to data released by the Montana Cannabis Control Division. These narrowly beats the monthly record of $28,552,001 set just last month. Prior to July the previous record of $27,098,679 was set in March of this year.

A large majority of the marijuana sold went to recreational consumers at $23,728,009. Marijuana sales for medical marijuana patients was $4,969,303. Gallatin was by far the top county for marijuana sales with $4.5 million, followed by Missoula at $3.4 million and Flathead at $3.1 million.
Continue reading

Sep 12 2023

Study: Tobacco Users, But Not Marijuana Users, Have Greater Odds for Complications Following Ankle Injury

A study conducted at the Yale School of Medicine found that those who use marijuana but not tobacco were not at greater odds of an adverse event up to 90 days following an ankle injury.

“Ankle fractures are common orthopaedic injuries that may be indicated for open reduction internal fixation (ORIF)”, states the study, published in the journal Foot & Ankle International. “Although the negative impact of tobacco use on perioperative outcomes of ankle fracture ORIF has been described, the potential impact of cannabis use on related outcomes is not as well established.”

For the study researchers examined data from a total of 149,289 patients. Of these, 10% used only tobacco, 1.8% used both tobacco and marijuana, and less than 1% used marijuana (867 total).
Continue reading

Sep 12 2023

14 US Congressmembers Send Letter Asking DEA To Keep Marijuana Schedule 1

A group of Republican lawmakers, led by Senator James Lankford (R-OK) and Representative Pete Sessions (R-TX), have sent a bicameral letter to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) urging the agency to not remove marijuana from the list of Schedule I drugs.

In a letter sent recently to the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA), the Department of Health (DOH) officially requested that marijuana to be reclassified as a Schedule III drug under the Controlled Substances Act, which would effectively legalize it for prescription use. Now, a group of Republican lawmakers is urging the DEA to reject this request.

Lankford and Sessions were joined by Senators Mike Rounds (R-SD), Jim Risch (R-ID), Marsha Blackburn (R-TN), Markwayne Mullin (R-OK), Mike Crapo (R-ID), Tom Cotton (R-AR), and Ted Budd (R-NC) along with Representatives Chuck Edwards (R-NC), Robert Aderholt (R-AL), Hal Rogers (R-KY), Earl L Carter (R-GA), and Andy Biggs (R-AZ) in sending the letter to DEA.
Continue reading

Sep 11 2023

New Jersey Officials Legalize Marijuana-Infused Foods and Drinks

The New Jersey Cannabis Regulatory Commission has passed new regulations that significantly expand the type of marijuana products licensed retail outlets and dispensaries can sell.

Recreational marijuana was legalized in New Jersey in 2021, with licensed marijuana retail outlets opening the following year. Despite allowing marijuana-infused “syrups, pills, tablets, capsules and chewables” to be sold to anyone 21 and older, the state up until this point has not allowed marijuana foods or drinks to be sold.

Rules approved Friday by the commission changes this by explicitly allowing “marijuana edible products resembling food and drink”.
Continue reading

Sep 11 2023

Connecticut: August Marijuana Sales Break Monthly Record at $25 Million

Marijuana sales in August have broken the monthly record set in June.

There was $24,938,642 worth of marijuana and marijuana products sold legally in August, according to the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection. $10.9 million of this was purchased by authorized medical marijuana patients. Total sales pass, by $1 million, the monthly record set in June ($23.9 million).

The total amount of marijuana sold since the start of legal recreational marijuana sales in January of this year now stands at nearly $175 million.
Continue reading

Sep 11 2023

New Study Highlights Role of Psychedelics in Protecting Mental Health During COVID-19 Pandemic

A landmark study recently published in the journal Scientific Reports under the umbrella of Nature, offers new insights into the potential benefits of psychedelics on mental well-being during the challenging circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The research, conducted collaboratively by several institutions, including ICEERS, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, the University of São Paulo at Ribeirão Preto, and the Autonomous University of Madrid, reveals a positive correlation between the use of psychedelics and indicators of psychological well-being.

The study employed a longitudinal and transcultural approach, incorporating various disciplines such as psychology, anthropology, and public health. Researchers surveyed a diverse participant base to ensure the findings have global applicability. Advanced data analysis techniques were used to interpret the results.
Continue reading

Sep 11 2023

Study: CBD Blocks Development of Breast Cancer Tumors In Vivo

Results of a new study “confirm that in vivo CBD blocks development of breast cancer tumors formed by cells induced to malignancy by IL-1β, endorsing its therapeutic potential for cancer treatment.”

Conducted by researchers at the Avenida Instituto Politécnico Nacional and Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, the study was published by the International Journal of Molecular Sciences.

“Previously, we showed in vitro that IL-1β treatment of non-invasive human breast cancer MCF-7 cells promoted their transition to a malignant phenotype (6D cells)”, states researchers. “This epithelial-mesenchymal transition was reverted by exposure to cannabidiol (CBD).”
Continue reading

Sep 10 2023

Global Cannabis Stock Index Up 36% Since Late August

The Global Cannabis Stock Index has had a considerable increase since the yearly low set in August.

Following news that the Department of Health is requesting the DEA reschedule marijuana from Schedule 1 to Schedule III, the Global Cannabis Stock Index increased from 7.42 on August 29 (the day before the news broke), to 9.63 a week later on September 6, a roughly 30% increase.

The Index saw another, albeit smaller, increase between September 6 to September 8, jumping to 9.93. This represents a 36% increase over the yearly low of 7.29, set on August 24.
Continue reading

Sep 10 2023

Arkansas Ban on Delta-8 THC and Other Hemp Products Blocked by Federal Judge

A federal judge has blocked enforcement of an Arkansas law that prohibits the distribution of products made from hemp and products containing delta-8 THC.

U.S. District Judge Billy Roy Wilson ruled this week to stop the enforcement of Act 629, which was passed by the state’s legislature earlier this session. The measure would ban both the production and sale of items containing delta-8, delta-9 and delta-10 THC. The lawsuit was filed by four different businesses, Bio Gen LLC, Drippers Vape Shop LLC, The Cigarette Store LLC, and Sky Marketing Corp, who argued that the law is “unconstitutionally vague.”

Judge Wilson stated that restricting transportation of items containing hemp would violate federal law. He pointed out that the legislature appeared to “keep the parts of the program it likes (purely industrial uses) and eliminate the parts it doesn’t (human consumption).”
Continue reading