DC adds medical cannabis delivery during COVID (Newsletter: April 15, 2020)

Booker wants medical marijuana access during COVID; MI market matures rapidly though roadblocks remain; WA gov vetoes cannabis research funds

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/ TOP THINGS TO KNOW

Advocacy groups including Justice Democrats, Sunrise Movement, IfNotNow Movement and others sent a letter calling on Joe Biden to endorse ending the war on drugs and enacting “equitable legalization of marijuana” to shore up his huge deficit in support from young voters ahead of the November election.

Sen. Cory Booker (D-NJ) said patients need continued medical marijuana access amid the coronavirus pandemic.

• “For people that need it for their post-traumatic stress, for the seizures that they may have, for serious medical conditions, I’m hoping we prioritize those people so they can get the medicine they need.”

A new report commissioned by Michigan’s Marijuana Regulatory Agency projects $3 billion in annual cannabis sales, a $7.85 billion total economic impact, 13,500 direct jobs created and a total employment impact of 23,700 jobs. But it also identifies barriers to growth, namely local bans and product testing delays.

Washington State Gov. Jay Inslee (D) used his line-item veto to cancel $100,000 in a budget bill that would’ve funded the development of research on marijuana impairment and whether cannabis use is associated with psychosis.

/ FEDERAL

The Food and Drug Administration sent a letter warning CBD Online Store to stop claiming that its products could prevent or treat coronavirus.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture published a Privacy Act Issuance outlining the types of records it keeps on people, including with respect to its hemp program.

Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) said he wants Small Business Administration relief “eligibility for state-legal cannabis companies” in the next coronavirus bill.

/ STATES

Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor facetiously tweeted, “I’m truly afraid if PA legalizes marijuana it could help fill a massive budget shortfall and very likely, many zero people will die from overdose. It would also trigger thousands of new jobs and inadvertently eliminate 20k+ annual arrests. And purity and safety would also skyrocket.We’d also risk eliminating a substantial, systematic, racially skewed public policy outcome. Pennsylvania would also jeopardize farmers by providing greater financial security and opportunities.This reckless action would have a truly debilitating impact on cartel employment and finances. Gird up now thy loins and valiantly resist what could be billions in revenue, thousands of jobs, less incarceration, and a shocking jolt of personal freedom.”

Nebraska’s secretary of state said his office is not going to adjust signature gathering deadlines for a proposed medical cannabis ballot measure to address difficulties experienced as a result of the coronavirus outbreak.

Florida’s agriculture commissioner tweeted that the passing of CBD pioneer Charlotte Figi is “absolutely tragic. But her courage will be her legacy, and will live on in the hearts of every patient whose quality of life was improved by medical cannabis. We can never thank you enough, sweet Charlotte.”

West Virginia Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stephen Smith spoke about marijuana legalization with a House of Delegates candidate.

Arkansas regulators are extending expiration dates of medical cannabis patients cards and are allowing doctors to make recommendations via telemedicine during the coronavirus pandemic.

Michigan regulators are no longer allowing caregiver-produced marijuana products to enter the adult-use market.

Massachusetts regulators adopted a resolution calling on the state’s congressional delegation to make marijuana businesses eligible for federal coronavirus relief funds. They also voted to table a decision on licenses for The Botanist following restructuring by its owner, Acreage Holdings, Inc.

Iowa regulators may take more than a year to issue new licenses to replace two medical cannabis dispensaries that recently closed.

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/ LOCAL

Naperville, Illinois’s mayor is threatening to censure a City Council member who made character attacks on two other lawmakers over their support for allowing marijuana businesses to operate.

/ INTERNATIONAL

Police in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada arrested a man for allegedly selling cocaine and added an additional fine for operating a non-essential business during the coronavirus outbreak.

/ SCIENCE & HEALTH

A study found that “while the efficacy of cannabis for various medical conditions continues to be evaluated, the best available evidence suggests a possible benefit for the treatment of chronic pain.”

A study of the impact of Canadian marijuana legalization found that “high school students reported higher peer approval of their cannabis use after legalization, but no change in perceived peer or parental prevalence of cannabis use, or parental approval of their cannabis use.”

/ ADVOCACY, OPINION & ANALYSIS

CNN’s Sanjay Gupta published a reflection on his time getting to know young CBD pioneer Charlotte Figi, who passed away this week.

Mycologist and entrepreneur Paul Stamets endorsed a proposed Oregon ballot initiative to legalize psilocybin for therapeutic use.

The Drug Policy Alliance led a group of 117 other organizations and 579 individual public health professionals in calling on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to recommend decarceration and expanded healthcare access for incarcerated and newly released people as a public health imperative to combatting coronavirus.

/ BUSINESS

Marijuana Business Daily is temporarily laying off about 30% of its staff.

Akerna announced plans to acquire Trellis.

The executive chairman of Innovative Industrial Properties, Inc. shot back at a short-seller report from Grizzly Research.

CReDO Science CEO Ethan Russo said his company is working to “leverage the antimicrobial properties of cannabis to make a disinfectant that would be cannabis based” that he claimed “should be” effective against coronavirus.

/ CULTURE

Country musicians The Bellamy Brothers are partnering with Trulieve to launch a marijuana brand called Old Hippie Stash.

Former Miss World Japan Priyanka Yoshikawa launched a CBD oil brand.

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Photo courtesy of Chris Wallis // Side Pocket Images.