Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. This week we look at Amazon’s support for legalization, a change in how France regards CBD, the disparity in prices for CBD products, cannabis and chronic back pain and more. Enjoy.
Cannabis, Corporations and Public Policy
Corporate giant Amazon has thrown its public support behind a Republican-backed congressional bill that would legalize cannabis at the federal level and let states decide if they want to legalize and regulate it or ban it.
That’s the word from Maureen Meehan writing for Benzinga. Meehan reports the company’s support came in the form of a tweet from its public policy department that read “We’re pleased to endorse @RepNancyMace’s States Reform Act. Like so many in this country, we believe it’s time to reform the nation’s cannabis policy and Amazon is committed to helping lead the effort.”
Mace’s (R-SC) State Reform Act, which was released in November, would remove cannabis as a Federal Schedule I substance and introduce a new 3 percent federal tax on cannabis.
Mace believes it’s likely Amazon’s support was motivated by legal issues with marijuana that have made hiring qualified individuals difficult. As she told Forbes, “The ban at the federal level actually affects their workforce.”
Meehan notes that Amazon’s support for the bill follows its decision to ask its delivery partners to openly advertise that they don’t screen applicants for marijuana. This was done in an effort to address the shortage of the company’s delivery drivers. It’s been estimated that cannabis screening reduces prospective applicants by up to 30 percent.
Meehan also makes the point that prior to that, in June of 2021, Amazon stopped testing for workplace cannabis use for most of its on-site positions that are not regulated by the Department of Transportation.
Only time will tell if free one-day delivery of cannabis products with Amazon Prime membership is in the offing.
To learn more, we suggest you read Maureen Meehan’s article in the January 25, 2022 issue of Benzinga.
Cannabis Quote of the Week
“Three things that really bring people together—animals, Britney Spears and cannabis.”—Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC)
Representative Mace’s observation is taken from Maureen Meehan’s article in Benzinga that we cited above. We’re not quite sure what to make of the “dots” Mace has connected as part of her pro cannabis position other than to say she must represent a pretty interesting district.
Travel Tips
There may soon be good news for mature consumers who use CBD and are thinking of traveling to France—provided, of course, they are fully vaccinated. There are signs France could be moving toward a more liberal hemp and CBD policy.
An article in Cannabis.net reports that France’s Constitutional Council has taken the position that CBD is neither an additive drug nor possesses hazardous health effects. This statement effectively overturns the French government’s earlier position which prohibited the possession, consumption, and trading of CBD flowers or fibers in any form, whether mixed with other products or as a single product.
This follows a recently announced judgment by France’s Constitutional Council on the definition of narcotics. The judgment stated that a material must be hazardous and addictive to be recognized as a narcotic.
The article noted that the ruling is consistent with the decision made by the European Court of Justice in 2020, which deduced that the ban on CBD by France was without a basis as the cannabinoid has no psychotropic or mood-changing effects and no adverse impact on health, according to a report by RFI. That verdict permitted CBD products to be sold all across the European Union. RFI is a French news and current affairs public radio station that broadcasts worldwide in French and in 13 other languages.
It’s already been estimated that the CBD market in France will be worth about 700 million euros.
Should you go, you may want to memorize this phrase: “voulez-vous un gommeux?”
To learn more about the ruling and other cannabis issues in France, we suggest you read the article “CBD is Neither Addictive Nor Harmful Rules the Constitutional Council of France.“It appears in the January 25, 2022 issue of Cannabis.net.
Medical Cannabis News and Notes
New York State’s Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) has announced a significant expansion of the State’s existing medical cannabis program.
According to Kyle Jaeger, reporting for Marijuana Moment, rather than having to rely on a list of specific eligible maladies, doctors will be now able to issue medical marijuana recommendations for any person with a condition that they feel could be treated by cannabis.
Said Tremaine Wright, Chair of the State’s Cannabis Control Board (CCB),“It is terrific to see the Medical Cannabis Program expand so vastly with the launch of the new certification and registration program and the ability of practitioners to determine qualifying conditions as included in the MRTA. The new cannabis industry is taking shape as we continue to implement the MRTA (Marijuana Regulation & Taxation Act) and provide greater access for New Yorkers to a medicine that we’re learning more about every day.”
Jaeger notes that this decision comes as New York prepares to launch its adult-use marijuana market. While marijuana retailers are not yet open for business, the legalization law signed by former Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) already permits adults 21 and older to possess and publicly consume cannabis.
To learn more we suggest you read Kyle Jaeger’s article in the January 24, 2022 issue of Marijuana Moment.
Cannabis and Chronic Back Pain
According to a study by a group of researchers in Philadelphia, medical cannabis may provide those who suffer from chronic back pain with an alternative to using opioids for pain management.
The study involved 186 patients with chronic back pain who were certified for medical cannabis use. The average morphine milligram equivalent (MME)/day of opioid prescriptions filled within the six months prior to MC certification was compared to that of six months after. Pain and disability questionnaires were distributed at three, six, and nine months post-certification.
The researchers found that “among patients with chronic musculoskeletal noncancer back pain who were certified for medical cannabis, they filled a significantly reduced amount of opioid prescriptions post-medical cannabis compared to pre-MC.”
The research team also found that patients show improved pain scores and daily function scores following medical cannabis certification. In addition, they contend that upon medical certification, patients with lower levels of baseline opioid use have a high chance of stopping opioid use altogether.
Members of the research team are affiliated with the Department of Medical Cannabis of the Rothman Orthopaedic Institute and the Department of Head and Neck Surgery, Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University.
The results of the study were published in the January 20, 2022 edition of the open access medical journal Cureus.
Stats of the Week
This week’s magic number is 5,100 percent. Yep, you read that right. That figure, according to a new analysis from Leafreport, represents the difference in price between the cheapest and the most expensive CBD products on the market. That market is pretty robust, having hit $4.6 billion in 2020. The Leafreport analysis also found a 1.96 percent price decrease per milligram of CBD since April of 2021.
Laura Fuentes, chief officer of science and innovation at Green Roads CBD, told Emma Francis Stone, Ph.D., reporting for Leafreport, “The gap (in price) starts showing up when companies who fly under the radar and don’t follow generally accepted manufacturing procedures turn up with lower prices—consumers should be wary of prices that seem to be too good to be true.”
Mitch Meyers, co-founder BeLeaf Life Oils, also told Stone it’s important for consumers to realize that you get what you pay for. Meyers recommends researching the product and the company that creates the product, checking to see if the product delivers on both potency and purity.
Said Meyers, “It is very important that people taking CBD for health and wellness purposes understand the company, the source of their hemp, and the testing regimen of the company producing the products.”
Stone also noted that the most significant difference in price is in the creams and topicals category, “which has a staggering difference of 11,142 percent separating the most expensive products from the cheapest.”
She also reported that in this report Leafreport added edibles as a category and found a 5,100 percent price difference between the cheapest and most expensive products.
If, like many mature consumers, you rely on CBD products as part of your wellness routine, we strongly urge you to read Emma Stone’s detailed and informative article in the January 24, 2022 issue of Leafreport.
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com and at 347-528-8753.
