Dec 13 2024

Kentucky Governor’s Office to Oversee Second Lottery for Medical Marijuana Dispensary Licenses

Governor Andy Beshear’s office has announced that it will partner with the Kentucky Office of Medical Cannabis and the Kentucky Lottery Corporation to oversee the second and final lottery for medical marijuana dispensary licenses.

This event will determine selectees for dispensaries in the Kentuckiana and Bluegrass regions. According to state officials, four selectees will be drawn from counties in these regions, excluding Fayette and Jefferson counties. Separate drawings will determine two selectees each for Fayette and Jefferson counties, which include Lexington and Louisville, Kentucky’s largest cities.

This lottery is part of Kentucky’s implementation of its medical marijuana law, signed by Governor Beshear earlier this year. The law establishes a tightly regulated medical cannabis program, allowing qualified patients access to cannabis products through licensed dispensaries. Kentucky’s approach includes using lottery systems to allocate dispensary licenses across the state’s regions, aiming to ensure fair access.
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Dec 13 2024

New York Court Blocks Marijuana License Processing for Some Applicants

A New York trial court judge has halted state regulators from processing certain cannabis dispensary licenses.

On Thursday, State Supreme Court Justice Sharon Graff issued a preliminary injunction preventing the state from processing licenses for dispensary applicants who had not secured municipal approval by November 17, 2023. The decision followed a lawsuit filed on behalf of four applicants who have secured locations but are awaiting state approval.

The plaintiffs argued that a now-waived rule requiring dispensaries to maintain a 1,000-foot distance from one another jeopardized their locations. Graff agreed, stating that the state created a scenario where a “belated designation of a secured location would be too close to a non-provisional license applicant’s previously designated secured location,” potentially invalidating the plaintiffs’ chosen sites.
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Dec 13 2024

Study: CBD Reduces Alcohol Craving in Individuals with Alcohol Use Disorder

In a double-blind randomized controlled, acute cannabidiol administration reduced alcohol craving and cue-induced nucleus accumbens activation in individuals with alcohol use disorder.

Published in the peer reviewed journal Molecular Psychiatry, researchers from the University of Heidelberg in Germany and Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have unveiled compelling evidence supporting cannabidiol (CBD) as a treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD). The study, known as the ICONIC trial, evaluated the effects of a single 800 mg dose of CBD compared to a placebo in 28 individuals diagnosed with AUD.

The randomized, double-blind trial examined outcomes including alcohol craving, cue-induced brain activation in the nucleus accumbens (NAc), and stress-induced alcohol cue responses. Findings revealed that participants who received CBD experienced significantly reduced bilateral NAc activation and reported lower alcohol craving during both stress-related and fMRI cue-reactivity tasks.
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Dec 13 2024

Study: Microencapsulated CBDA Shows Prolonged Antioxidant and Antimicrobial Effects

Cannabidiolic acid (CBDA) encapsulated in alginate microcapsules shows extended antioxidant activity and reduced cytotoxicity, according to a newly published study.

An image from the study.

The study, titled Alginate-based microencapsulation as a strategy to improve the therapeutic potential of cannabidiolic acid, explores an innovative method for enhancing the bioavailability and effectiveness of CBDA, a compound found in marijuana. The research, published in the International Journal of Pharmaceutics and epublished by the U.S. National Library of Medicine, also highlights CBDA’s potential as a natural therapeutic compound.

“Cannabidiolic Acid (CBDA) is a promising natural compound with potent antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and anti-emetic properties”, states the study. “Its antioxidant activity rivals that of vitamin E, while its anti-inflammatory effects are also remarkable.”
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Dec 13 2024

Delaware: 529 Applicants Advance to Delaware Marijuana Retail License Lottery, to Take Place December 19

The Office of the Marijuana Commissioner (OMC) has announced that 529 applicants have advanced to the lottery stage for 15 open retail marijuana licenses in Delaware.

(Photo credit: Vicente LLP).

The highly anticipated Licensing Lottery will take place on December 19, 2024, at 1:00 p.m. in Dover. The event will be broadcast live on Facebook through the “Office of The Marijuana Commissioner” page, providing transparency in the selection process.

Applicants who met the minimum qualifications and paid the required fees were assigned a lottery number. Separate drawings will be held for each county, with results visible during the live broadcast. Following the lottery, the OMC will notify selected applicants and publish the winning lottery numbers on its website.
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Dec 13 2024

Garden Society Workers Become First Cannabis Employees in New Jersey to Unionize Under Teamsters Local 469

Garden Society employees have made history as the first cannabis workers in New Jersey to unionize under Teamsters Local 469.

The 40 newly unionized members cook and manufacture marijuana products, solidifying their place in a growing labor movement within the cannabis industry.

“Garden Society workers made their voices heard loud and clear that they want Local 469 to represent them in winning the strong contract they deserve,” said Michael Broderick, President of Local 469. “As a new and growing industry in New Jersey, it is vital that we fight to ensure that cannabis industry jobs are good careers with a fair wage, safe working conditions, quality health care benefits, and a pathway to retiring with dignity. Garden Society workers — and all cannabis workers in New Jersey — deserve nothing less.”
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Dec 13 2024

Strong Majority of Tennessee Voters Support Legalizing Recreational Marijuana, Including Republicans, Finds New Poll

The latest Vanderbilt University poll reveals a clear majority of Tennesseans now back the legalization of recreational marijuana, highlighting a growing disconnect between public opinion and state lawmakers.

Conducted between November 18 and December 4, the survey found that 63% of registered voters support full legalization, including 53% of Republicans and 78% of Democrats.

This significant shift in public sentiment comes as Tennessee remains one of the few states without any form of legalized recreational or medical marijuana (24 states have legalized recreational marijuana, while 39 have legalized marijuana medicinally).
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Dec 12 2024

Study: Cannabis Oil Extract Shows Protective Effects Against Kidney Fibrosis in Animal Model

Lebanese cannabis oil extract (COE) has been found to provide significant protection against kidney fibrosis caused by folic acid (FA) in an animal model, according to a new study published in PLoS One.

Cannabis oil.

Researchers at Lebanese American University conducted in vitro and in vivo experiments to assess COE’s potential therapeutic effects on renal fibrosis, a hallmark of chronic kidney disease for which no reversal treatments currently exist.

The study used a rat model where a single dose of 250 mg/kg of folic acid induced kidney fibrosis. Rats were subsequently treated with varying doses of COE (5, 10, and 20 mg/kg). Clinical parameters such as serum creatinine, urea, and electrolytes were measured, along with kidney and heart pathology assessments. Additional in vitro tests on cultured rat podocytes evaluated cell viability, migration, and protein phosphorylation levels related to cell signaling pathways.
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Dec 12 2024

New York Bill to Amend Definition of Crops, Livestock and Livestock Products to Include Marijuana Delivered to Governor

New York Assembly Bill 1234, which would include cannabis within the legal definition of crops, livestock, and livestock products, was officially delivered to Governor Kathy Hochul today.

The bill passed overwhelmingly in both legislative chambers earlier this year, with a 58-3 vote in the Senate and a 141-3 vote in the Assembly.

Filed by Assemblymember Donna Lupardo in January 2023 with 21 bipartisan cosponsors, the measure amends Section 301 of New York’s agriculture and markets law by adding cannabis to the list of agricultural products. If signed into law, this legislation will recognize cannabis as an agricultural commodity, aligning it with crops like fruits, vegetables, and grains under state law.
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Dec 12 2024

Medical Marijuana Now Legal in Nebraska, 39th State to Do So

Two medical marijuana initiatives, approved overwhelmingly by voters last month, are now in effect.

Today, the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Patient Protection Act (Initiative 437) and the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Regulation Act (Initiative 438) officially took effect.

The Nebraska Medical Cannabis Patient Protection Act provides legal safeguards for patients, allowing them to possess up to five ounces of marijuana for medical use, if they receive a recommendation from a physician. The measure also provides legal protections for healthcare providers who recommend medical marijuana.
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