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CONCLUSION:
Cannabis abuse can increase injury severity and prolong workdays lost. Drug testing is recommended for at-risk construction workers with inadequate safety measures.

workplace, Employees

there is incomplete evidence of the efficacy and safety of medical use of cannabis in the clinical contexts considered in this review. Furthermore, for many of the outcomes considered, the confidence in the estimate of the effect was again low or very low. To give conclusive answers to the efficacy and safety of cannabis used for medical purposes in the clinical contexts considered, further studies are needed, with higher quality, larger sample sizes, and possibly using the same diagnostic tools for evaluating outcomes of interest.

study, 'medicine', MS, Chemo

According to research published earlier this month in the American Journal of Public Health, Colorado’s legalization of recreational marijuana in 2014 coincided with a 6.5 percent reduction in opioid overdose deaths. The researchers studied the opioid overdose rate in the state from 2000 to 2015, and found that after 14 years of a steady rise in opioid overdose deaths, the rate decreased by an average of 0.7 deaths per month.
 
My response:
The  study failed to account for the following:
•             Increased public education about the dangers of opioid prescribing (In 2014, 10.3% of patients received high-dose opioid prescriptions which was reduced to 8.7% in 2016)
•             Use of PDMP  (The rate of multiple provider episodes per 100,000 residents decreased from 60 in 2014 to 32 in 2016)
•             Wider distribution of the overdose-reversing drug naloxone (2011: 997 to 2015: 3,393)
•             Move from Rx opioids to heroin (Heroin overdose deaths increased 50% from 2014 to 2016 while opioid deaths decreased 12%.) Failure to quantify the impacts of the above make it unlikely any researcher could separate out the impacts of all of                them from another potential factor.
 
In addition, there is legitimate research that shows that marijuana use primes the brain for opioid addiction.
http://www.theamericanconservative.com/articles/can-marijuana-help-addic... #FakeNews

He is no longer employed by Amtrak. No amount of marijuana use by an engineer is acceptable, the railroad has said.

Amtrak, fatal

Major self-mutilation (amputation, castration, self-inflicted eye injuries) is frequently associated with psychiatric disorders and/or substance abuse. A 35-year-old man presented with behavioral disturbances of sudden onset after oral cannabis consumption and major self-mutilation (attempted amputation of the right arm, self-enucleation of both eyes and impalement) which resulted in death. D

fatal, oral cannabis

“My job is to represent the people of Jacksonville Beach and as I mentioned during the council meeting, 81 percent of the people may have voted for medical marijuana. But it wasn’t 81 percent of Jacksonville Beach residents looking to put a dispensary in Jacksonville Beach,” Mayor Charlie Latham said.
#NotInMyBackyard

Ban, Florida Ban

This study found that chronic marijuana use in adolescence was negatively associated with achieving important developmental milestones in young adulthood.

youth, chronic
Colorado, Washington

Is there a link between marijuana use and mental illness?

The overlapping endocannabinoid and endogenous opioid systems may explain this patient's response to therapy, and this synergistic relationship is discussed.
The endocannabinoid and endogenous opioid systems are syngergistic, which may explain the effect of naloxone in cannabis toxicity. Cannabinoid and opioid receptors belong to the rhodopsin subfamily of G-protein-coupled receptors which, when activated, reduce cellular levels of cyclic adenosine monophosphate (cAMP) by inhibiting adenylyl cyclase [8
Robledo P, Berrendero F, Ozaita A, et al. Advances in the field of cannabinoid–opioid cross-talk. Addict Biol. 2008;13:213–224. [Google Scholar]]. Both cannabinoid and opioid receptors are located primarily at presynaptic terminals, and their activation inhibits the release of several neurotransmitters. Opioid and cannabinoid receptor activation also modifies the permeability of sodium, potassium, and calcium channels [8Robledo P, Berrendero F, Ozaita A, et al. Advances in the field of cannabinoid–opioid cross-talk. Addict Biol. 2008;13:213–224. [Google Scholar]]. Receptors of both systems coexist in the central nervous system (CNS) with overlapping distribution in the brain, brainstem, and spinal cord [9Scavone JL, Sterling RC, Van Bockstaele EJ. Cannabinoid and opioid interactions: implications for opiate dependence and withdrawal. Neurosci. 2013;248:637–654. [Google Scholar]]. Cannabinoid and opioid receptors also co-localize in γ-Aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic neurons with potential coupling to a second messenger systems and formation of heterodimers between the two receptors [11Pickel VM, Chan J, Kash TL, et al. Compartment-specific localization of cannabinoid 1 (CB1) and mu opioid receptors in rat nucleus accumbens. Neurosci. 2004;127:101–112. [Google Scholar]
].

opioid, synergistic

Even after less than six years of smoking the drug, the ill effects were already being seen on their breathing, according the research presented at the British Thoracic Society (BTS) winter meeting.
 
"It is vital that young people understand the dangers of both cigarette and cannabis smoking since these habits can start having a serious impact on their lungs at an early stage."
 
 

smoking, lungs, second hand smoke

The number of drivers involved in fatal crashes in Colorado who tested positive for marijuana has risen sharply each year since 2013, more than doubling in that time, federal and state data show. A Denver Post analysis of the data and coroner reports provides the most comprehensive look yet into whether roads in the state have become more dangerous since the drug’s legalization.

Obstetrician–gynecologists should be discouraged from prescribing or suggesting the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes during preconception, pregnancy, and lactation. Pregnant women or women contemplating pregnancy should be encouraged to discontinue use of marijuana for medicinal purposes in favor of an alternative therapy for which there are better pregnancy-specific safety data.

There are insufficient data to evaluate the effects of marijuana use on infants during lactation and breastfeeding, and in the absence of such data, marijuana use is discouraged.

Notably, 34–60% of marijuana users continue use during pregnancy, with many women believing that it is relatively safe to use during pregnancy and less expensive than tobacco 

It is difficult to be certain about the specific effects of marijuana on pregnancy and the developing fetus, in part because those who use it often use other drugs as well, including tobacco, alcohol, or illicit drugs, and in part because of other potential confounding exposures. Marijuana smoke contains many of the same respiratory disease-causing and carcinogenic toxins as tobacco smoke, often in concentrations several times greater than in tobacco smoke.

Studies of marijuana exposure during pregnancy are potentially subject to reporting and recall bias, often relying on self-reported habits, including frequency, timing, and amount of marijuana use. 

women using marijuana at least weekly during pregnancy were significantly more likely to give birth to a newborn less than 2,500 

 Several studies noted statistically significantly smaller birth lengths and head circumferences as well as lower birth weights among exposed offspring 

Pregnancy, ACOG, 2022 Marijuana

City leaders felt treating dispensaries as they do pharmacies would allow them across large swaths of the city, so they voted to outright ban them until planners could devise an alternative.  City leaders got their first glimpse at that alternative Monday night and unanimously endorsed a plan to craft rules that they call a kind of “middle ground” between the ban and current pharmacy rules.

Florida Ban, sarasota, Ban

Council members cite lack of local control as reason. The city of Venice will ban medical marijuana dispensaries within city limits, because current state statutes do not allow any form of local regulation above those placed on pharmacies. 
In moving toward prohibiting dispensaries, Venice joins the city of Sarasota and town of Longboat Key, though Sarasota is looking to modify its approach that would treat dispensaries the same as stand-alone pharmacies.

Florida Ban, Ban, Venice, City Council

Drug Free America and National Drug-Free Workplace Alliance 

The best long-term solution is prevention,” Sessions said. “The best action is not to start. Just say no.”

Those three words — embraced by First Lady Nancy Reagan in the 1980s to discourage young people from using recreational drugs — are back.

On Friday, as Summit County released its latest overdose numbers for the past seven days — 58 residents sought help in emergency rooms after overdosing — U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions dredged up the slogan during an address to law enforcement in Pennsylvania.

“The struggle to overcome addiction can be a long process – and it can fail. Tragically, it often does fail,” he said, according to a written copy of his remarks released by his office.

 

Sessions

A native of New Mexico, Markowski, 23, started doing drugs while living and working in Germany. First, smoking marijuana, then snorting methamphetamine.

Kentucky's ban on medical marijuana has survived an initial test in court, with a judge ruling Wednesday that the state has a good reason to "curtail citizens' possession of a narcotic, hallucinogenic drug."

Kentucky's ban on medical marijuana has survived an initial test in court, with a judge ruling Wednesday that the state has a good reason to "curtail citizens' possession of a narcotic, hallucinogenic drug."

Ban, workplace, drug free workplace

The Post reported a 40 percent increase in the number of all drivers, impaired or otherwise, involved in fatal crashes in Colorado between 2013 and 2016. That’s why the Colorado State Patrol posts fatality numbers on electronic signs over the highways.
“Increasingly potent levels of marijuana were found in positive-testing drivers who died in crashes in Front Range counties, according to coroner data since 2013 compiled by The Denver Post. Nearly a dozen in 2016 had levels five times the amount allowed by law, and one was at 22 times the limit. Levels were not as elevated in earlier years,” The Post explained.
All drivers in marijuana-related crashes who survived last year tested at levels indicating use within a few hours of the tests.
The Post found fatal crashes involving drivers under the influence of alcohol grew 17 percent from 2013 to 2015. Figures for 2016 were not available. Drivers testing positive for pot during that span grew by 145 percent, and “prevalence of testing drivers for marijuana use did not change appreciably, federal fatal-crash data show.”

Colorado, Fatalities, car crashes

We therefore must educate our youngsters, parents and educators before any use of marijuana or alcohol begins. We then must identify those individuals for whom marijuana or alcohol use has become problematic, getting them into an effective program of treatment before they progress to more dangerous alternatives.
 
Schools must revamp curriculums so children understand that any opioid misuse, be it prescription or street drugs, is a "red line" that they cannot cross.

School, opioid, opinion

Kissimmee commissioners voted 4 to 1 to ban the dispensaries from opening in town. They don’t believe there is room to regulate effectively the way the law is currently written.

Ban, Kissimmee, City Council, Florida, Florida Ban

Updated information on Florida counties and city councils banning 'medical' marijuana dispensaries.

Ban, Florida Ban

“There are too many unknowns,” said Commissioner Tambra Varnadore. “I don’t have a problem with the use of it, but there are so many rumors out there that it would be potentially abused, so I would rather wait. I feel if our citizens need one, then we can deal with it down the road.”

Manatee, Pametoo, Ban, Florida Ban

Snelling argued that not everyone using medical marijuana is severely ill, with symptoms like insomnia, mood swings and chronic itching qualifying for the drug. She said she is worried misuse will be widespread.
“Voting for something to be legalized as a medicine by popular vote or through legislative does not make it a prescription drug,” said Miller.

Tampa City Council, miller, video

Two local mothers spoke out against the plan at Thursday night's meeting.
Teresa Miller, of south Tampa, provided maps showing clusters of local pharmacies.
"Within a two-mile radius there's 15 pharmacies," said Miller. "If we get that many pot dispensaries around our country, it's going to be disastrous. We need to protect our children and our communities."

Tampa City Council, miller, zoning

Two local mothers showed up at the pow-wow to voice their concerns about an influx of dispensaries. One of the mothers, Teresa Miller, believes cannabis acts as a gateway drug.
“Years ago, when my son smoked pot and spring boarded to opioids, a severe addiction, I told myself if I could save one family from going through what our family and thousands of families around our state have gone through with a disease of addiction, then I would,” Miller said.
Miller also showed the council a map of 15 local pharmacies. She claimed she was worried that the dispensaries would expand to a similar number.
“If we get that many pot dispensaries around our country, it’s going to be disastrous. We need to protect our children and our communities.” Miller noted.

Tampa City Council, miller, zoning

The number of drivers involved in fatal crashes in Colorado who tested positive for marijuana has risen sharply each year since 2013, more than doubling in that time, federal and state data show. A Denver Post analysis of the data and coroner reports provides the most comprehensive look yet into whether roads in the state have become more dangerous since the drug’s legalization.

Colorado, car crashes, Fatalities

Indian River County joined many governments across the state banning dispensaries rather than accepting them as pharmacies, the only other option allowed in a state law adopted this summer.

Indian River, Ban, County commissioner, Florida Ban

The Leon County School District says, for the time being, they wont allow school nurses to administer the medication or hold medical marijuana in schools until the district gets more guidance from the state and DOE.
NOT A PRESCRIPTION

Marijuana’s Negative Effects
Construction workers must have full use of their skills and faculties while performing their jobs. Medical marijuana may have positive medical benefits, but there are also well-documented negative effects. Some negative effects to the central nervous system include changes in sensory perception, altered thought formation and expression, short-term memory problems, and impaired thinking and learning. Negative physical effects include impaired motor performance, loss of balance and coordination, decreased attentiveness and alertness, prolonged response time to stimuli and danger, decreased ability to judge distance and space, and impaired ability to perform complex tasks.

drug free workplace, construction, workplace, Business, Employees, OSHA

The main finding was that when rats were exposed to secondhand smoke from marijuana for one minute, their arteries became less efficient at carrying enough blood for at least 90 minutes, whereas similar exposure to secondhand smoke from tobacco caused impairment that fully recovered within 30 minutes (exposure to clean air in the exposure chamber did not cause impairment). (It is important to understand that arteries of rats and humans are similar in how they respond to tobacco smoke, so the response of rat arteries to marijuana smoke is expected to be a valid indication of how human arteries respond to marijuana smoke.)

study, second hand smoke

The largest increases in opioid-related deaths in Florida from 2014 to 2015 were from the following drugs: Buprenorphine (up 102 percent), heroin (up 74 percent), fentanyl (up 69 percent), codeine (up 57 percent), and Oxymorphone (up 42 percent).

opioid

: A "clear, steady upward trend in illness/disability as reason for not working among prime-age adults. And even more striking, the level and trend are very similar for men and women, even though most of the attention on this issue is going to men."

workplace

“The facts of the accident included Mr. Siegler being the driver of a vehicle while under the influence of marijuana,” the Sheriff’s Office said in a press release. “He subsequently crossed the center lane of travel striking another oncoming vehicle.
Siegler was arrested at his home in rural Rochester and booked into the Thurston County Jail.
Siegler referenced the crash and apparent remorse in a June 30 post on his Facebook page, saying he wanted to pay his respects and that “she deserved better than what happened.”
“I swear I'll live my life for you and your family,” he wrote. “I owe it to you. I'm so sorry. I hope to see you one day in heaven, no matter how much I don't deserve it right now, I just hope you can forgive me. I'm sorry in a way I could never describe. I may not have known you. But I love you and all that you've taught me in this short amount of time.”

Oregon, car crashes, Fatalities

Crime is common near pot shops, including assaults, robberies and shootings. On July 19, a security guard was killed and three other men were shot at a pot shop in L.A. during an attempted robbery. Gangs and drug dealers don’t view marijuana dispensaries as pharmacies. Rather, they see them as rival drug dealers.
When pot shops open in a business district, complaints of the business neighbors are numerous. Fights, drug use and street drug dealing increase in the area. This, in turn, affects the type of clientele in the area for neighboring businesses.
It is well known that homelessness has increased in Denver and Seattle after legalization. Also, drug dealing dramatically increases law enforcement costs. The San Diego Association of Governments published a report finding that 52% of males arrested tested positive for marijuana in 2015. Thirty-five percent reported committing crimes to support a drug habit.
The Denver district attorney warned in 2016 that every type of crime there increased after marijuana legalization: “The Denver Police Department is busier enforcing marijuana laws and investigating crimes directly related to marijuana, including murders, robberies and home invasions, than any other time in the history of the city.”
And it can get even worse. Pot industry profits are used to buy political influence.

crime, california, denver

"We found no observational studies that met inclusion criteria, but a growing body of cross-sectional literature suggests negative opioid-related correlates among individuals who use cannabis and opioids concurrently. These include opioid misuse;9,10,99,133 a greater number of opioid refills;99 a longer duration of opioid use; a higher dose of opioid medication prescribed;9 and endorsement of using opioids and other pain medications without a prescription.134"

Veterans, opioid, study

As we keep saying, marijuana may be many things, but “harmless” simply is not one of them.
59 articles on harms of marijuana

Overdoses, Family Council

Abstract

Contemporary models of substance use disorders emphasize the role of cognitive control, which has been linked to difficulties in resisting the use of substances. In the present study, we measured two aspects of cognitive control, response inhibition (operationalized by a Go/NoGo Task) and performance monitoring (operationalized by an Eriksen Flanker Task), in a group of young cannabis-use disorder (CUD) patients and compared these functions with two control groups (i.e. a group of cigarette smokers and a group of non-smokers). We employed both behavioural and electrophysiological measures. The results indicate that CUD patients displayed reduced NoGo-P3 event-related potentials compared with non-smoking controls, but not compared with smoking controls. In addition, CUD patients were slower on Go trials than both control groups. No other between-group electrophysiological or behavioural differences were observed. These results seem to suggest that CUD patients have problems related to response inhibition, but performance monitoring seems relatively unaffected.

 

CUD, Cannabis-use disorder, study

"Though the results do not show a direct causal link, it's important to note that even though most people think marijuana isn't harmful, it may have severe consequences for some people's functioning, education and mood," Forbes said. "While that may seem unimportant at age 20, the level of education you receive will likely have a huge effect on your quality of life and socioeconomic status later in adulthood."

science daily

Drug users now cause almost as many traffic deaths in Michigan as drunken drivers, a trend police blame on prescription drugs, the opioid epidemic and the easy availability of marijuana, medical and otherwise.
Over the past decade, fatal drunken-driving crashes across the state are down 36%, while those caused by people impaired by drugs have risen 263%.

Michigan, Fatalities, car crashes

The research on more than 4,000 students, published in the Review of Economic Studies, found that those who lost access to legal marijuana showed substantial improvement in their grades. Specifically, those banned from cannabis cafes had a more than 5 percent increase in their odds of passing their courses. Low performing students benefited even more, which the researchers noted is particularly important because these students are at high-risk of dropping out. The researchers attribute their results to the students who were denied legal access to marijuana being less likely to use it and to suffer cognitive impairments (e.g., in concentration and memory) as a result.

academics, Netherlands, access, college graduation, education

They say they took their daughter to counseling, rehab summer camps, anything to help with her marijuana use and mental health struggles. The day before her overdose, she had passed two drug tests.  Her parents thought they had finally turned a corner.

overdose, tampa

A sample of the comments (all left anonymously):

  • “I’ve never sentenced a cocaine or heroin addict that didn’t start with marijuana.”
  • “90 percent of felons I ever sentenced started their journey to addiction with marijuana.”
  • “As a drug court judge, almost every one of my participants, when asked, stated marijuana was their gateway drug.”
  • “I have been assigned to drug cases for 11 years and was a police officer for 32 years. Every conversation I had with people on hard drugs, they always started with marijuana. Why do we want to do this with our citizens?”
judges, National Judicial College, Drug Court

Reports have shown a staggering increase in cannabis-related emergency department (ED) visits in recent years. In 2011, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and Drug Abuse Warning Network (DAWN) estimated a total of 1.25 million illicit-drug–related ED visits across the US, of which 455,668 were marijuana related.2 A similar report published in 2015 by the Washington Poison Center Toxic Trends Report showed a dramatic increase in cannabis-related ED visits.3 In states with recent legalization of recreational cannabis, similar trends were seen.

cannabis-induced psychosis, Psychosis

"It's tied our hands in my opinion," said Commissioner Penny Taylor, who said she wants to ban dispensaries from Collier County. "It's just the lack of local control. We have certainly the folks that need this for their illness, but we have the whole community at large to think about. That’s the big picture." 

Collier, Ban, Amendment 2, Florida Ban

“Duration of marijuana use seems to be a significant factor associated with metabolic syndrome,” the researchers said.
Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of symptoms that increase a person’s risk for heart disease, stroke and diabetes.
The study found that “every year increase in marijuana use is associated with at least a 5 percent increase in odds of having metabolic syndrome.”

study, Georgia State University, Metabolic Syndrome
Florida, 2017 Legislation

“His consistent use of marijuana affected his brain structure,” Gomez-Mallada said.  But Cox ruled: “The court finds there is little possibility of rehabilitation. The defendant is a danger.” Marshall’s accomplice, Henry, has pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and is scheduled for sentencing in July.

Teen, Fatalities

She did not specify how many cases involved marijuana mixed with a synthetic opiate.
“Essentially, the message we’ve tried to get out there, is if you are using any form of street drugs, count on them having some form of synthetic opioid mixed in,” Samarco said.
Samarco added that it is nearly impossible to tell which drugs are mixed with a synthetic opiate.
“We can’t tell you for sure until we test the blood of someone who has died or any of the drugs seized by law enforcement,” she added.
Samarco gave a dire warning to all street drug users.
“Just don’t use it. That’s all we can tell you, and we can’t say it enough.”

fentanyl

After retail marijuana sales began in Colorado, the increase in collision claim frequency was 14 percent higher than in nearby Nebraska, Utah and Wyoming. Washington's estimated increase in claim frequency was 6.2 percent higher than in Montana and Idaho, and Oregon's estimated increase in claim frequency was 4.5 percent higher than in Idaho, Montana and Nevada.

HLDI, Colorado

Abstract

Objective This study examined how freshman year substance use prospectively predicted time to college graduation, and whether delayed graduation predicted postponed adoption of adult roles and future substance use. Participants Participants were part of a longitudinal study that began in 2004. The first analyses focused on freshman year (N = 2,050). The second analyses corresponded to a subset of participants at age 27 (N = 575). Methods Measures included self-reported substance use, adult role adoption, and university reported graduation dates. Results Results indicated that frequent binge drinking and marijuana use during freshman year predicted delayed college graduation. Those who took longer to graduate were more likely to have lower incomes and were less likely to obtain a graduate degree. Taking 5-6 years to graduate was associated with greater likelihood of alcohol-related problems. Conclusions Findings support the importance of interventions during freshman year of college to decrease substance use and promote timely graduation.

 

college graduation, alcohol

“John is an old friend who shares the same values [of] trying to hold government accountable and make it more efficient,” Corcoran said. “We share that mission.”
Morgan had been the driving force behind the referendum approved by voters last year, and a bill outlining how medical marijuana regulations would work was passed Friday during the Legislature’s special session. 

Morgan

Several other residents spoke in favor of more government regulations on medical marijuana dispensaries. Ellen Snelling said she voted against Amendment 2, which was overwhelming approved by voters in 2016.
"Medical marijuana is a drug. It is harmful and addictive. Limiting the number of dispensaries is a good public health policy," said Snelling.
She told commissioners she is concerned that too much access will lead to marijuana getting into the wrong hands and being used for recreation.
"Remember the pill mills? Strict regulations will help prevent pot mills," said Snelling.
 

County commissioner, Snelling, zoning

“The pill mills were everywhere,” said Teresa Miller. We had our van stolen from our front yard one Saturday night, and it was abandoned in Brooksville with drugs in it. I don’t want this to happen again, and I don’t want that type of clientele walking through our neighborhood again.”

County commissioner, miller, zoning

First, dosing of smoked marijuana remains unpredictable. And although much of the medical marijuana debate centers on the effects of single exposures, insufficient information exists regarding the effects of repeated exposures. Approximately 10% of people routinely using marijuana become addicted, with a higher incidence amongst adolescents. Tolerance and down-regulation of receptors have been documented with repeated marijuana use. A marijuana withdrawal syndrome has also been recognized, as has an association with psychosis.

Doctors, bullying

In the new study, researchers analyzed data from the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, a long-running study in the U.K. that has followed women and their children. The study began when the women were first pregnant, all in 1991 or 1992.
For the new report, the researchers looked at questionnaires that more than 5,300 of the children completed. The kids were surveyed at least three times between ages 13 and 18, and asked about the frequency of their use of drugs, alcohol and tobacco in the previous three monthsThey were also sent a follow-up survey by mail to measure these behaviors at age 21.
Researchers found that teenagers in the study who regularly used marijuana were 26 times more likely to have used other illegal drugs, such as cocaine, amphetamines or hallucinogens, by the time they reached early adulthood, compared with teens who hadn't smoked pot, according to the findings published online today (June 7) in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.

study, longitudinal, UK, gateway

Conclusions One-fifth of the adolescents in our sample followed a pattern of occasional or regular cannabis use, and these young people were more likely to progress to harmful substance use behaviors in early adulthood.

study, longitudinal, PubMed

Aside from the changes to criminal law, legalization has implications for school safety policies, child abuse and neglect statutes, child care center regulation, advertising restrictions, substance abuse programs, employment law, traffic offenses, banking, state revenue, ports of entry and federalism, among many others.
These policy challenges have far-reaching implications, few have been easy to resolve, and most have drawn time and resources away from other policy areas. But most stakeholders have approached each issue with good faith and an earnest determination to find solutions that gain broad support.

Colorado, policy, Children

According to the Journal of American Medical Association, 50 percent of the people who have a severe mental condition also have a substance abuse problem. JAMA also found that 37 percent of alcoholics have a mental illness, as do 53 percent of drug addicts.
When people use marijuana regularly, the drug may reduce thinking, memory and learning functions. Marijuana's effects on these abilities may last a long time or even be permanent. There have also been increases in fatal car crashes due to marijuana use in states like Washington and Colorado that have legalized the practice.

mental health, Dual diagnosis

Authorities said a toddler nearly died from eating edible marijuana. The Rhode Island Department of Children, Youth and Families on Friday announced the 2-year-old girl had almost died Thursday and had been admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit at Hasbro Children’s Hospital.

Rhode Island, edibles, hospital

She said she only smoked marijuana about four hours before putting the girls in the bathtub after taking a nap at around 3:30 p.m., the affidavit states.

child abuse, Colorado

But he was also the teen who began smoking marijuana at 14 before turning to oxycontin two years later. He wrecked his mother's car while driving stoned, pilfered money from his friends, dropped out of high school and spent three weeks in jail after his parents turned him in for stealing their credit cards.

Consequences, pathway, gateway

Commissioners will consider banning anyone under 21, requiring dispensaries to keep visitor logs and extensive surveillance cameras, and even imposing "odor maintenance plans" on the three dispensaries the city plans to allow in designated zones.

zoning, moratorium, Miami, Florida

The town suddenly became a haven for recreational pot users, drawing in transients, panhandlers and a large number of homeless drug addicts, according to officials and business owners. Many are coming from New Mexico, Arizona and even New York.
He said he’s also noticed an uptick in crime in the area. Shoplifting, he said, has become a major problem in Durango and business owners are becoming fed up.

Colorado, homeless, zoning, crime

“So called medical marijuana in other states has become a farce and a sham. The average user of smoked medical marijuana has no chronic illness and is a white male in his mid-30s with a history of drug and alcohol abuse. . . In the last 20 years and due to market demand, constant genetic engineering has increased THC potency in marijuana plants, and extraction-concentration methods are becoming extremely popular and widespread. become addicted.”Marijuana is the 2nd leading cause of impaired driving arrests. One in six adolescents trying marijuana will become addicted.
“In the city of Denver since the legalization of marijuana Denver Police Department is dealing with a 900% increase in the unlawful cultivation and manufacture of marijuana concentrate, and a 99% increase in unlawful distribution of marijuana and marijuana concentrate.
Marijuana is the #1 problem in Colorado schools. In school year 2015-16, 63% of all drug related school suspensions were for marijuana. 58% of all drug related school expulsions were for marijuana. 73% of all drug related school referrals to law enforcement were for marijuana violations. Youth past month marijuana use is 74% higher than the national average.

Utah, postition statement, Sheriff, Black Market, youth usage, zoning, dropout
County commissioner

We want to prevent what happened with Big Pharma from happening with Big Marijuana in Florida. We want to avoid the pill mill scenario we experienced several years ago.  Given the number of people dying in our state from opioid abuse be it heroin or prescription drugs we do not want to add fuel to this fire by inadequately regulating ‘medical’ marijuana dispensary zoning, licensing and locations.

2017 Legislation, Testimony, County commissioner, Tampa City Council

The position that medical marijuana dispensaries are prohibited due to the conflict in federal law is not unique. Coral Gables, for instance, holds the same opinion.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article151193...

zoning, Miami, dispensaries, pot shops

We should approach mass marijuana production and distribution as we would any other large-scale public health problem. We should do what we can to limit exposure, and we should provide clear, unbiased education. In the case of prevention efforts being unsuccessful, we need to provide immediate treatment and assistance in stopping use. If we are going to use this as a medication, then we should use it as we use other medications. It should have to undergo the same scrutiny, Food and Drug Administration approval, and regulation that any other medication does. Why are we allowing a pass on a medication that very likely would carry with it a black-box warning?

Colorado, Doctors, Roberts, black box warning

 All cannabis‐based and cannabinoid medications should be subjected to the  rigorous scrutiny of the Federal Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulatory process.  This process provides important protections for patients, making medications available  only when they: 1) are standardized by identity, purity, potency and quality; 2) are accompanied by adequate directions for use in the approved medical indication; and 3)  have risk/benefit profiles that have been defined in well‐controlled clinical trials. 

asam, Potency, cannabis

“It’s not the job of the state government to create conditions in which private companies can be profitable for selling marijuana.”  Therefore regulate marijuana like it was a medicine with strict guidelines similar to the FDA process!

Minnesota, regulations

DO FLORIDIANS NEED INCREASED ACCESS TO HARD LIQUOR?

  1. Florida is ranked #3 in the nation for fatal DUI crashes- Not just statistics- Deputy John Kotfila died saving another drivers life when a driver with a .27 BAC hit Kotfila head on.

 Image result for john kotfila jr    Karan Khullar     http://www.madd.org/blog/2016/october/Template-21.png …..

  1. Binge drinking or excessive alcohol consumption is responsible for 88,000 deaths in our nation.

  2. Alcohol related deaths rank 3rd for preventable deaths behind obesity and cigarette smoking.

  3. ONLY 18 states allow hard-liquor to be sold inside grocery stores.  (National Alcohol Beverage Control Association)

    1. Unrestricted: California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, South & North Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin, Illinois, West Virginia, Maine, Washington D.C., Hawaii, Missouri, Massachusetts, New Jersey, Louisiana

    2. With restrictions: Florida, Colorado, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas, Vermont, Wyoming, Washington

    3. Beer Only: Utah, Minnesota, Kansas, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Connecticut

    4. Beer and Wine: Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Arkansas, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Indiana, New York, Maryland (grandfathered in liquor sales), New Hampshire

    5. NONE:  Alaska, Delaware, Rhode Island

PLEASE NOTE those states allow hard liquor in grocery stores have very strict and enforced DUI laws.

Floridians do not want or need HB-81.  HB-81 takes away the added security system that separate stores provide with camera systems and ability to card everyone who enters their store AND hard-liquor will be available 24/7.  

 
HB-81, 2017 Legislation

Kirk’s children are seeking damages for negligence, failure to warn, wrongful death, deceptive trade, strict liability, breach of implied warranty, misrepresentation and consumer law  violations. They are represented by Gregory Gold, of Greenwood Village.
The effects of marijuana can be much more powerful when it is eaten rather than smoked. New York Times columnist Maureen Dowd, on a visit to Colorado, wrote a much-cited column about the misery induced by eating marijuana candy.

edibles, infused, Fatalities

The number of teenagers sent to emergency rooms more than quadrupled after marijuana was legalized in Colorado — mostly for mental health symptoms, researchers reported Thursday.
They found 639 teenagers who went to one hospital system in Colorado in 2015 had either cannabis in their urine or told a doctor they'd been using cannabis. That's up from 146 in 2005, before the use of marijuana was legalized in Colorado.

emergency room

Pediatricians are in a unique position to provide parents and teenagers with accurate information and counseling regarding the consequences of marijuana or cannabis use by children, teenagers, and adults. A number of strategies can be used to counsel families about preventing use and to intervene if marijuana is being used either recreationally or medically by the families for whom they provide medical care.

talking points, pediatricians, parents, Side-Effects

The driver, 18-year-old Darion Wheeler died from head and chest trauma. Coroner Stratmoen released toxicology results and determined Wheeler had “Cannabis by-product levels that were higher than 10 times the limit that is considered impaired driving by studies from the National institutes of Health and the Highway Traffic Safety Administration.”

Wyoming, Fatalities

Couture blamed "black ice" despite the nearly 50 degree weather at the time, according to the release. Police said the traveled portions of Pelham roads were clear of snow and ice. Couture admitted to smoking marijuana before driving and performed field sobriety tests. 

 

car crashes

My property value will decrease if a pot dispensary locates next door or in close proximately.  I already have camera and locked gate on my commercial property but believe I will need at least two full-time security guards.  This product is cash only sales.  I am concerned about the new cliental wandering through our neighborhoods.  As a small business owner, the increase security and insurance costs are going to greatly impact our profit and discourage us from expanding.  

2017 Legislation, Tampa City Council

In a new study, researchers in London, Ontario found that women who used marijuana while pregnant were almost three times more likely to have an infant with low birth weight than women who did not use marijuana.

Pregnancy

Cannabis use appears to increase rather than decrease the risk of developing nonmedical prescription opioid use and opioid use disorder.

psychiatryonline, opioid

Similarly, it can be anticipated that if introduced, the indications for the  use of medical cannabinoids would expand well outside of the initial indications. Hence, the medical profession cannot justify the use of medical cannabinoids that would be associated with an iatrogenic risk of serious adverse psychological events.  The use of medical cannabinoids for any purpose, including research under closely observed conditions, is incompatible with mental health promotion.

Research, mental health

“Instead of people seeing this as a medicine, a lot of people see it as a big business,” anti-drug activist Teresa Miller said. “And it will change our landscape if we end up with pot shops on every corner.”

miller, Tampa City Council, zoning, Amendment 2

Through his research, he believes there may be a link between chronic use of marijuana — especially when started at a young age — and Alzheimer’s. 
Moral issue:  In addition to the money and organizing efforts driving the legalization campaigns, Fortanasce said widespread ignorance has enabled the marijuana lobby to obfuscate the issue. While marijuana may have some medicinal properties (cannabidiol in pot, for example, can help decrease nausea and be used to treat seizures), Fortanasce noted that there are already medications on the market that are far more efficacious than marijuana.

alzheimers, Fortanasce, Legatus

Ask any Florida legislator if their phone has been ringing off the hook from constituents who can't get enough vodka or rum, and they would have to say "no." Then why are they pushing hard liquor into our grocery stores without public input or backing?
 
It appears the driving force behind this change are corporate executives at big box stores who will profit greatly. They don't care about Florida families and are too cheap to spend money building a separate entrance. The current separate entrance policy allows for ID verification at the door along with cameras monitoring every corner, provides an avenue to prevent underage drinking, and protects our friends in recovery from making an impulse purchase. Does anyone want our children growing up with liquor as part of the food shopping experience?
 
Binge drinking or excessive alcohol use is responsible for 88,000 deaths in our nation, and Florida is ranked third in the nation for fatal DUI crashes. Only 16 other states allow this type of distribution. Thirty-four states do not allow hard liquor to be mixed with grocery items.
 
Other than creating a one-stop shopping experience that includes alcohol, I can't think of any reason for passing this bill. Our state doesn't need it and the public, the few who are aware of this proposed change, don't want it.
 
Teresa Miller, Tampa

HB-81, alcohol, 2017 Legislation, miller
Colorado, rmhidta

Medical Marijuana is a very political, emotional and complex topic.  Now that amendment 2 has passed implementing it as a medication seems to be even more contentious.  I am sure we can all agree the goal, as with any medication, is to provide guidelines to make it as safe and beneficial as possible while at the same time preventing abuse or misuse.  Attempting to regulate prescription medications has proven to be very difficult and the lack of strict guidelines led to over prescribing, wide-spread misuse, addiction and overdose problems that devastated families and communities throughout our nation. 

2017 Legislation

Marijuana legalization also involves significant downsides to existing businesses.  As marijuana use has increased in states that have legalized its use, so has use by employees, both on and off the job.  Large businesses in Colorado now state that after legalization they have had to hire out-of-state residents in order to find employees that can pass a pre-employment drug screen.

SAM, Employer, Business
Utah, BAC

“It’s a craze, not an epidemic,” he said, adding that “epidemic” implies something beyond people’s control.

coroner, gateway, Fatalities

Findings suggest that marijuana use is associated with a 54% increase in the odds PDV (physical dating violence) victimization, and a 45% increase in the odds of perpetration. CONCLUSIONS: Findings suggest that dating violence is a correlate of marijuana use, and that association is strongest among adolescents (vs. emerging adults) and girls (vs. boys).

meta-analysis, PDV, adolescent, Studies, Research, ncbi

The existence of hallucinations, delusions, and organic brain dysfunction in heavy cannabis users seems to be associated with cannabinoid levels in hair. The continuation of persistent symptoms 3 months after the discontinuation of cannabis abuse, was a remarkable finding. SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: We provide evidence that chronic and heavy cannabis abuse results in long-lasting brain dysfunction in all users and in long-lasting schizophrenia-like psychotic symptoms in more than half of all users. These findings suggest a reevaluation of the current classification of cannabis as a "soft narcotic" which erroneously, therefore, is typically considered harmless. (Am J Addict 2017;XX:1-8).

ncbi, chronic, impaired, delusions, Long-term, Studies, Research

"I think it's really important to remember that marijuana of any kind is illegal under federal law," Board Chairwoman Dianne Jacob said. "There have been comments made by the new administration in Washington that signs may point to action being taken in the near future to support federal law."

Ban, San Diego, california
new york

Adolescent marijuana use has significantly increased in our state post-legalization, as has been documented in numerous studies. Ask any teenager and they will tell you that marijuana use is rampant in our local high schools, which is obviously not surprising given its widespread availability and the perception of its safety. While we can debate the effects on adults, marijuana use clearly has a detrimental impact on a teenager.

Read more here: http://www.tri-cityherald.com/opinion/letters-to-the-editor/article13776...

adolescent, legalization, opinion

The state capital may be in Tallahassee, but the pot shop capital for the South may soon become Tampa. Hillsborough County commissioners stuck down a provision that would have limited the number of marijuana dispensaries/pot shops. What does that mean for citizens living in unincorporated Hillsborough?

opionion, miller, pot shops

Everyone should be concerned:  Voters, not medical practitioners or scientists, have been able to determine medical practice.
Beneath it all, however, we must pause to seriously consider the known, detrimental effects of repeated marijuana use on the developing adolescent brain.  We must act accordingly and responsibly in ways that promote the public health and safety, help delay initiation of use, and reduce, not increase, the accessibility of marijuana to this particularly vulnerable population.

Public Health, Brain, Long-term, short-term, Falkowski

The Washington Poison Center (WAPC) experienced another year of increased calls on marijuana exposures and poisonings. In 2016, there were 286 calls related to marijuana exposures*. Over 42% (n=120) of the total calls were regarding individuals 13-29 years who had been exposed to some form of marijuana. Highest marijuana exposure rates in 2016 were King, Spokane, Snohomish, and Pierce counties.

2016, Washington, poisoning

The Washington Poison Center (WAPC) saw a slight increase in calls regarding opioid exposures in 2016 (n=1,696) compared to 2015 (n=1,672). Of the calls received, over 70% (n=1,199) of the exposures occurred in individuals 20 years of age or older.

2016, Washington, opioid

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