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THE LAWS THEY ARE-A-CHANGING
Marijuana Policy and the Community
Ohio - Marijuana News
Ohio Rights Group
Responsible Ohio
Responsible Ohioans
Ohioans to End Prohibition
Better for Ohio
Responsible Ohio
● Group of investors (10 names released)● 10 Grow Sites● 5 Testing Facilities● 21 or older – Personal use● Medical – any age, with parental consent● Home grows – 4 plants plus 8 ounces● 5% tax (plus 15% for grower and 15% for
distributor)● $554 million in tax revenue by 2020. ● Projection are that they will sell about 250
tons of pot per year by then.
Responsible Ohio
Concerns● Marijuana monopoly● Children would be allowed access to “medical”
marijuana (with written consent of a parent)● Home-grown pot can be shared● Program for low-income individuals to get low-cost pot● Physicians are not subject to any disciplinary or criminal
action if the person issues a medical marijuana certification.
● 1140 stores allowed – only 203 Starbucks in Ohio● Can “medical” marijuana folks use in public? the
workplace? Correctional facilities? Daycares? Probation Issues?
Cannabidiol Medications
● Ohio House Bill 33● Children with Seizure Issues● Charlotte’s Web (Charlotte Figi) – Stanley
Brothers ● Epidiolex (GW Pharmaceuticals)● Mixed Success● Epilepsy Foundation – Need for more testing
1. DO WE WANT THIS FOR OUR COMMUNITY?
2.IF THIS HAPPENS, WHAT DOES IT TO LOOK LIKE?
Two Policy Considerations
LEGALIZATION AND COMMUNITY CONCERNS
Impact on the Education Community
How will this impact our schools?
● Sets up a system of mass commercialization● More individuals and students will use
○ Colorado, ages 12-17 have a current 39% higher use rate than the national average
○ Denver – 350% higher rate● Drug related suspensions and expulsions up
by 32%
● Accessibility increases as does the perception it is not harmful
Impacts on School Performance
● Those with a grade average of “D” are 4 times more likely to use
● Using is link to school dropout out rate● More likely to skip classes and have lower
academic achievement● Interferes with motivation, attention span,
memory learning, intelligence
Long term consequences
● Studies showing a loss of 8 IQ points● Even casual use changes the brain – abnormal
shape, volume and density
● Increased marijuana use will result in reduced academic performance - who will be blamed for that?
MARIJUANA AND MENTAL HEALTH
Mental Health Impact
Link between Marijuana and Mental Illness
• Since 2002, almost a dozen studies have shown that regular use of marijuana carries a significant increased risk of developing psychotic illnesses like schizophrenia.
• Higher risk for:• Those with a family history of the disorders• Those with a psychosis-prone personality• Those who start using in early adolescence.
• Risks increase with potency and frequency of use.
Northwestern University
Northwestern Medicine at Northwestern University1.
December, 2013 – Brain Abnormalities with Chronic Use
○ “The younger drug abuse starts, the more abnormal the brain.”○ Of schizophrenia patients surveyed, 90% used before
schizophrenia set in2. April, 2014
– Casual Marijuana Use Linked to Brain Abnormalities
○ Changed the volume, shape and density of gray matter in brain – effects on decision making
○ “I’ve developed a severe worry about whether we should be allowing anybody under age 30 to use pot unless they have a terminal illness and need it for pain.”
3. March 2015 - Teen cannabis users have poor long-term memory in adulthood
○ Daily users – Hippocampus changes that influenced memory (18% worse on long term memory tests)
○ Two years marijuana free and did not change results
Meta-analysis was conducted by Australian researchers in 2011 for the Archives of General Psychiatry• used 83 studies to assess the impact of marijuana
use on the early onset of psychotic illness.
The findings were clear and consistent: “The results of meta-analysis provide evidence for a relationship between cannabis use and earlier onset of psychotic illness…[The] results suggest the need for renewed warnings about the potentially harmful effects of cannabis.”
Link between Marijuana and Mental Illness
Additional Potential Concerns
● Mental Health issue are related○ Increased risk of psychotic illnesses and
schizophrenia○ Brain regions: emotion and motivation○ Suicidal ideation, personality disorders and
interpersonal violence
Schools could deal with the added stress of dealing with these issue
New everyday dynamics
● Medicine – who dispenses? Illegal under federal law
● Children living with using parents – are children coming to school ready to learn?
● Staff who are using – what are your policies?● Edibles and beverages, vapor pens, oils
Will this impact the learning environment?Guarantee treats brought in are safe?
Marijuana and Public Safety
ER Admissions• 374,000 ER visits due solely to marijuana – ER visits
increase nationally more than 50% from 2004 to 2011.
• Children’s Hospital of Colorado – 2.3% of all poisonings of children under 12 were marijuana-related.
• Colorado - Hospitalizations related to marijuana have increased 82 percent from 2008 to 2013.
• Why?
Rocky Mountain HIDTA Report
Not Just Smoking…
Meet Claude…
Black Cherry Gummy BearTHC Infused100 milligrams of THC per bearColorado law – 10 mg per servingFoot = one serving
Marijuana Wax
• Wax is to marijuana as freebasing is to cocaine
• Vapors fill room and ignite with a spark
• Risk of burns and homes blowing up
• Learn how to cook wax on YouTube
• FEMA issued bulletin in February to identify BHO production
• 32 hash oil explosions in Colorado in 2014 with 12 in 2013 and 0 in 2012
• Closed Wax System – more expensive
Marijuana Transformation: Waxing, Dabbing and The High
•BLOGS HAVE CALLED IT THE “FUTURE OF CANNABIS”•CAN EXCEED 80% THC•HALLUCINATIONS•IMMEDI ATE HIGH – SMOKING TAKES AB OUT 20 MI NUTES•DESCRIBED AS AN INTENSE EXPERIENCE, EVEN FOR SEASONED MARI JUANA USERS
Dabbing and Vaping
Legalization = Commercialization
• With legalization comes market for stronger, more intense high
• Very little research done on higher potency weed• Little to no regulation on high-concentrate pot
products
Tony Coder / Marcie SeidelDrug Free Action Alliance
6155 Huntley Road, Suite HColumbus, OH 43229
www.DrugFreeActionAlliance.org/marijuana
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