Sep 13 2023

New York Bill Would Prohibit Marijuana Use Within 30 Feet of a Child or a Location Where a Child Resides

Legislation filed today in the New York Legislature would prohibit “the use of cannabis within thirty feet of a child or within thirty feet of any location in which children reside or attend for any recreational or educational purpose”.

Filed by Assemblymember Phillip Steck (D), Assembly Bill 8025 has been assigned to the Assembly Codes Committee.

Specifically, the measure would prohibit “smoke or vape cannabis within thirty feet of a child or within thirty feet of any location in which children reside or attend for any recreational or educational purpose, including areas separated by walls, closed doors or floors within a building.”
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Sep 13 2023

Minnesota Supreme Court Rules Marijuana Odor By Itself Does Not Justify Vehicle Search

In a landmark decision the Minnesota Supreme Court has ruled that the smell of marijuana on its own is not probably cause to search a person’s motor vehicle.

The ruling is based on a case brought by Adam Torgerson, who was pulled over in 2021 in Meeker County. Although Torgerson was pulled over for having too many lights on the grill of his vehicle, an officer claimed he smelled marijuana.

After a second officer approached the vehicle and said he also smelt marijuana, police ordered Torgerson, his wife, and his child out of the car and conducted a search of the vehicle, subsequently finding a small amount of methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia.
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Sep 13 2023

Massachusetts Committee Approves Bill to Add PTSD and Opioid Use Disorder to Medical Marijuana Program

Legislation in Massachusetts that would expand the state’s medical marijuana program and ease access for veterans has been passed through its initial committee.

House Bill 4087 has been “reported favorably” by the House Joint Committee on Cannabis Policy, and referred to the Joint Committee on Health Care Financing. The bipartisan measure is sponsored by State Representatives Michael Soter (R), Joseph McKenna (R), Brian Murray (D) and Marcus Vaughn (R).

Under current Massachusetts law, a person can become a medical marijuana patient if they have a ​“debilitating medical condition”, which is defined as someone who has cancer, glaucoma, positive status for human immunodeficiency virus, acquired immune deficiency syndrome, hepatitis C, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis. HB 4087 would expand this to include “post-traumatic stress disorder, opioid use disorder”.
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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.
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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.
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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).
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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.
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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”.
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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.
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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.
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