Welcome to Senior Cannabis Digest. In this issue you will find reporting on a possible study of whether or not cannabis can be used to treat Coronavirus, Jay Sochoka has a new article on cannabis etiquette tips in “Ask the Pharmacist,” there are suggestions on how best to use cannabis when in quarantine and more. Enjoy.
Treating COVID-19 with Cannabis
A Canadian medical cannabis company wants to see if cannabis can be an effective way to combat the symptoms of COVID-19.
According to TG Branfalt, writing for Ganjapreneur, Cannalogue, a Canadian online medical cannabis marketplace, has applied to Health Canada for approval to organize a clinical trial of the effectiveness of medical cannabis in treating COVID-19.
If it receives approval, the company said it will enroll patients in the study to research if medical cannabis can help ease the symptoms caused by COVID-19 or any mutant strains of coronavirus.
The company has launched a website calling for volunteers in the event the trial is approved by Health Canada.
Branfalt noted in his article that some research suggests THC and other cannabinoids can sometimes suppress the immune system, while other studies indicate that cannabis can boost the immune system by increasing white blood cell count in patients with immunodeficiency disorders such as HIV.
To learn more you can visit TG Branfalt’s reporting in the March 27, 2020 issue of Ganjapreneur.
www.ganjapreneur.com/canadian-cannabis-firm-applies-to-conduct-covid-19-therapy-trials/
Ask The Pharmacist
This week consultation pharmacist Jay Sochoka offers his take on changes in cannabis etiquette he thinks are made necessary by the pandemic.
Do not trifle with COVID-19. I paid a lot of attention in my epidemiology and microbiology courses at pharmacy college, and this is serious. It spreads easily and does harm to the lungs above and beyond any influenza mutation, real or imagined. I always smile cynically when a person mentions that humans (besides themselves) have no natural enemy. Bacteria and viruses have been hunting us for millennia, but since we couldn’t see them for the majority of the time that we have infested the planet, nobody really thought about it until a few hundred years ago. Pasteur is a personal hero of mine—the Dr. Anthony Fauci of his time.
You may be wondering why I’m covering this in a cannabis column and what it has to do with you. The answer is simple. EVERYTHING! What is the first thing you do after you take a hit with other people in the room? I have a Mother Superior-type habit length (30 years and counting), and if there was another person in the immediate vicinity, I offered them a sample. Far more often than not, the offer was accepted.
What is more beautiful than sharing something as moving as a cannabis experience? Take this…all of you…and breathe it. I have been in more session circles than I could ever remember, but this one stands out. It was the spring of my last year at school (the year I started buying my own cannabis) and there were six fraternity brothers, including myself. Each of us had a packed metal pipe. It was the thing to use back then, especially if it had a “resinator” (I’m dating myself), which I never used. I’m glad that glassware has become the norm. We all lit up and then passed to the right. We all had different strains and, as I say, there is nothing that provides maximized cannabis effects like a “mixed green salad.” We each repacked three times and kept passing. My best college circle by far.
Now imagine that the timeframe is last month, on Friday before Presidents’ Day, the same situation, and one of us has COVID-19. Now six of us have it, because it is viable in human saliva. Now, the six of us went to six different parties that Saturday and had a circle session with six new people. It’s a Sunday before a holiday and there are more parties to attend. A few in that circle even traveled out of the area, and those 36 each have a new circle of six. In three days, 216 people were infected. Were viral reproduction not so detrimental to health and/or living, I would marvel at it.
So here is the bottom line. Puff-Puff Pass…has to pass. Sharing a well-packed bubbler is a shelved idea now too. I’d say share a pan of edibles with a group, but that goes against social distancing policies, and they need to stay around for now. My suggestion? Grab your favorite methods and a computer device and have a virtual meeting with some of your cannabuddies. You can listen to the same music. “Dark Side of the Moon” comes to mind as a staple. We played the entire album to try and keep things light in the dispensary, whose system was given an abrupt healthcare revamping. I heard “Good tune!” with each new song.
“So here is the bottom line. Puff-Puff Pass…has to pass.”—Jay Sochoka
Things will settle down eventually. I didn’t say they would return to normal. Normal died around March 6. Maybe we will get comfortable enough to share a device with a patient/friend again, but, for now—You. Just. Can’t. Do it. I wish that all of you stay healthy, or, if you do get sick, your symptoms are manageable. Take care and Godspeed.
Jay Sochoka, R.Ph., MCP, is a consultation pharmacist in Scranton, Pennsylvania.
Quote of the Week
“There’s a simple and effective solution for states and cities to help cover their huge budget shortfalls after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides: legalize recreational sales of marijuana.” Jessica Rabe of Data Trek Research.
For example, Ethan Wolff-Mann, writing in Yahoo Finance, notes that according to the state comptroller, New York State might see a revenue drop of $4 billion to $7 billion, because of the pandemic. Though New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo hasn’t been successful in efforts to legalize recreational use in New York , Wolff-Mann writes that conservative estimates have shown legalizing recreational use could bring in up to $1.3 billion in revenue per year.
You can learn more by reading Ethan Wolff-Mann’s article in the March 26, 2020 issue of Yahoo Finance.
finance.yahoo.com/news/coronavirus-could-accelerate-us-cannabis-legalization-153011559.html?
Cannabis Left Out of Federal Stimulus Package
While a number of states have declared that cannabis dispensaries are “essential businesses” that need to remain open during the pandemic, at this point the cannabis industry will not see any of the $2 trillion stimulus package enacted by Congress.
That’s because as far as the federal government is concerned, cannabis companies are still part of an illegal industry and as John Hudak, a cannabis policy expert at the Brookings Institution, points out, “Illegal businesses do not access legal funding.”
According to Natalie Fertig, Mona Zhang and Paul Demko, writing in Politico, despite the disconnect between state and federal laws on cannabis, the fact remains the cannabis industry generated $15 billion in legal sales last year and employs 340,000 people. In addition, employers and workers pay federal taxes, and are required to comply with other coronavirus-related measures such as paid sick leave coverage.
The reporters also point out that marijuana sales are currently booming and dispensaries are among the few businesses that are hiring right now. In fact, some are hiring laid-off workers from other industries to meet demand.
Kim Rivers, CEO of Trulieve, a cannabis company which is valued at $1 billion, said the company is staffing up its delivery fleet, retail workers, and people to handle increased inventory shipments.
Said Rivers, “We are hiring because we are having to shift our business a bit. Now is a great time [to apply], particularly if you’re in a business that has seen layoffs.”
Zhang, Demko and Fertig noted that prior to the recent spike in sales, the industry had been in what they described as financial turmoil, with many companies laying off workers and selling off acquisitions as they ran short on cash. However, for cannabis companies to access assistance made available through the stimulus package, Congress or the administration would need to dictate their inclusion.
Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) said through a spokesperson he wants to include such a provision in a future coronavirus aid package. Similarly, Sen. Patty Murray (D-Wash.) said she is “exploring what can be done in the upcoming appropriations process to help them through this crisis and beyond.”
You can learn more by reading Fertig, Zhang and Demko’s excellent reporting in the March 27, 2020 issue of Politico.
www.politico.com/news/2020/03/27/cannabis-coronavirus-151209
Tips on Using Cannabis When In Quarantine
If you are a mature consumer who has decided to self-quarantine, The Fresh Toast‘s Brendan Bures has a few tips.
For starters, Bures notes that a study published last year in the Journal of Affective Disorders found that marijuana reduces symptoms of anxiety, depression, and stress—all of which may be considered “desirable effects” by those who are in quarantine. Researchers conducting the study found those hoping to reduce stress should use high-CBD/high-THC strains while high-CBD/low-THC varieties best help limit depression.
Bures’s article points out the researchers concluded, “Cannabis reduces perceived symptoms of negative affect in the short-term, but continued use may exacerbate baseline symptoms of depression over time.”
Bures also writes that if you want to be extra safe while in quarantine, particularly if there are others around, you should stick to non-smokable delivery systems such as edibles, tinctures, and topicals. They will be easier on the lungs than smoking or vaping and less likely to annoy those sharing the space with you.
For more tips on cannabis and quarantine please read Bredan Bures’s complete article in the March 20, 2020 edition of Benzinga.
www.benzinga.com/markets/cannabis/20/03/15617137/should-i-use-marijuana-during-the-quarantine?
Senior Cannabis Digest is compiled and edited by Joe Kohut and John Kohut. You can reach them at joe.kohut@gmail.com or at 347-528-8753.
