Articles

01/09/2018

Please note that the 2015 crash report included "alcohol-suspected" crash data. In the 2016 crash report, only alcohol confirmed data is used. Hillsborough is #2 in alcohol confirmed fatalities and Orange County is #1. Hillsborough is #1 in alcohol confirmed crashes AND drug confirmed crashes. :-(
Florida
Fatal crashes up 8.74% from 2015
Alcohol confirmed fatalities down 9.25%
Hillsborough
Alcohol confirmed crashes 546
alcohol confirmed injuries 271
alcohol confirmed fatalities 42
Drug confirmed crashes- 60

01/08/2018

DENVER (CBS4) – Denver police have made at least 12 arrests after a year-long investigation into the Sweet Leaf marijuana dispensaries in the Mile High City.  Investigators accuse Sweet Leaf of selling amounts of marijuana that exceed the Amendment 64 regulations of no more than an ounce of the drug per sale.

01/07/2018

Marijuana has both short- and long-term effects on the body.
Within a few minutes of smoking marijuana, a person feels the effects of pot, as THC is rapidly passes from the lungs into the bloodstream, making its way to the brain and other organs.
What causes the “high” people experience is marijuana’s effect on over-activating parts of the brain containing specific brain cell receptors. This leads to feelings of an altered sense of time, other altered senses, changes in mood, impaired body movement, impaired memory and difficulty in thinking and problem-solving.
Researchers are still studying the long-term effects of marijuana. But what is known is that the younger a person begins using pot, such as in the teen years, the greater the declines in general knowledge, impaired thinking, learning difficulties and lowered IQ.

01/01/2018

RESULTS:
Alcohol/cigarettes followed by marijuana was the most common sequence. NMPO or cocaine use after marijuana, and heroin use after NMPO or cocaine, differed by generation. Among successively younger generations, NMPO after marijuana and heroin after NMPO increased. Millennials were more likely to initiate NMPO than cocaine after marijuana; Generation X and Baby Boomers were less likely (odds ratios = 1.4;0.3;0.2). Millennials were more likely than Generation X and Baby Boomers to use heroin after NMPO (hazards ratios = 7.1;3.4;2.5). In each generation, heroin users were far more likely to start heroin after both NMPO and cocaine than either alone. Sequences were similar by gender. Fewer paths were significant among African-Americans.

CONCLUSIONS:
NMPOs play a more prominent role in drug initiation sequences among Millennials than prior generations. Among Millennials, NMPO use is more likely than cocaine to follow marijuana use. In all generations, transition to heroin from NMPO significantly occurs only when both NMPO and cocaine have been used. Delineation of drug sequences suggests optimal points in development for prevention and treatment efforts.

12/22/2017

“Legalization will NOT stop the crimes committed by users who have no jobs to support their habits and prey upon you and I to get that money for their hit/fix.”
And while marijuana may very well have medicinal purposes, it’s not just the drug that makes our controlled substances dangerous and a significant crime and socio-economic issue in our country. The people involved in the illegal operations where drugs (including marijuana) are grown/produced, trafficked and transported, distributed to the TENS of THOUSANDS of dealers and MILLIONS of customers, are NOT good people! THOUSANDS of people are viciously murdered in Mexico every year as organizations vie for control over the markets and territory. 

12/19/2017

12/01/2017

At low doses, kratom produces stimulant effects, making people more talkative, alert and energetic, according to a DEA fact sheet. At high doses, kratom users can experience the drug’s sedative effects, the report shows.

11/16/2017

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

11/16/2017

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

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

11/08/2017

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

11/01/2017

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]
].

10/16/2017

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."
 
 

10/02/2017

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 

09/26/2017

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.

09/26/2017

“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.

09/26/2017

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."

09/02/2017

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.

08/28/2017

“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.”

08/25/2017

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.

08/25/2017

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.

08/21/2017

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.

08/21/2017

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.

08/13/2017

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).

08/03/2017

“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.”

08/01/2017

"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"

07/26/2017

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.

07/26/2017

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%.

07/21/2017

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.

07/14/2017

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.

06/29/2017

“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.”

06/25/2017

“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.

06/22/2017

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.

06/19/2017

“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. 

06/08/2017

“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.”

06/07/2017

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.

06/05/2017

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.

06/03/2017

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.

05/25/2017

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.

05/21/2017

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.

05/19/2017

05/18/2017

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.

05/15/2017

 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. 

05/10/2017

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.

           …..

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

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

4. 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.  

05/07/2017

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.

05/07/2017

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.”

05/03/2017

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.  

04/26/2017

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

04/20/2017

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.