News

GOVERNOR SUNUNU FALLS FOR POT INDUSTRY’S LIES

State-Operated Drug Dealers Will Harm the Granite State (CONCORD, NH) – In response to New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu’s push for state-operated pot shops passing the State Senate, Smart Approaches to Marijuana Action (SAM Action) President Dr. Kevin Sabet, a former White House drug policy advisor to Presidents Obama, Bush, and Clinton, issued the following […]

SAM Friday Fact 05/17/2024: Since 2018, marijuana workforce drug test positivity has increased by 60.7%, with 2023 reaching a new peak

This week, Quest Diagnostics released an analysis of workforce drug testing in 2023. Quest Diagnostics processed 10 million drug tests in 2023 and found a  surge in drugs test tampering. Additionally, the company shared their marijuana workforce drug test positivity rate for 2023, highlighting that the marijuana workforce drug test positivity rate is at an […]

ANOTHER DISASTROUS REPORT SHOWS THE DANGERS OF POT-POSITIVE WORKERS 

New Quest Diagnostics Study Highlights Drastic Measures Being Used to Avoid Testing Positive for Drugs Marijuana Positivity in the U.S. Workforce Increased 45.2% Over Five Years (WASHINGTON, DC) – Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) CEO Dr. Kevin Sabet, a former drug policy advisor to Presidents Obama, Bush, and Clinton, released the following statement today based on a new […]

It’s frustrating when naysayers deny the data 

Listen to the interview here: https://www.audacy.com/podcast/newell-normand-7db0d/episodes/its-frustrating-when-naysayers-deny-the-data-that-reveal-the-dangers-of-marijuana-bf4af

SAM Friday Fact 05/10/2024: The rate of violent behavior in daily marijuana users aged 18-34 was nearly twice the violent behavior rate of non-users

The study “Associations of cannabis use, use frequency, and cannabis use disorder with violent behavior among young adults in the United States” was recently published by Nora D. Volkow and the team at NIDA. The study found that the rate of violent behavior in daily marijuana users aged 18-34 was nearly twice the violent behavior rate of non-users.  […]

A Bird’s Eye View of The Negative Effects of Marijuana on Mental Health 

By Dr. Christian Thurstone  We’ve learned a lot about marijuana in the past decade. First, the marijuana available today is about 10 times more potent than it was in the 1980s and 1990s. This means that today’s marijuana is more likely to cause panic attacks, psychosis, and cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS). CHS is a new […]

SAM Friday Fact 05/03/2024: Percentage of Colorado Students Who Used Marijuana via Vaporization in the Past 30 Days

The Healthy Kids Colorado Survey, conducted by the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, assessed trends in tobacco, drug, and alcohol use among high school students in the Centennial State. Notably, beyond asking students whether they used marijuana, it asked how they used it, finding that many vaped it. Among past-month marijuana users, the […]

BIDEN AFFIRMS MARIJUANA’S ILLEGAL STATUS, BUT MARIJUANA RESCHEDULING DECISION TAINTED BY INDUSTRY INFLUENCE, POLITICS

Decision To Reschedule Marijuana Could Have Far-Reaching Consequences for Public Health and Safety (WASHINGTON, DC) – Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) President Dr. Kevin Sabet, a former White House drug policy advisor to Presidents Obama, Bush, and Clinton, issued the following statement today in response to reporting that the Administration has proposed a decision to reverse decades […]

Exposing Colorado’s psychedelic conflicts of interest

As Colorado develops its regulatory framework for the psychedelics industry, we now see that it is being undermined by many of the same competing interests that have taken hold of the state’s profit-driven THC drug and marijuana industry. Read the entire article HERE.

Kevin A. Sabet: The harm-reduction movement has lost sight of what truly matters

Those who prioritize safe supply and MAID over treatment and recovery have given up on improving the lives of people struggling with addiction Now, as the drug crisis has further spiralled out of control, some people want to double down on these policies, including decriminalization, expanding safe supply and allowing MAID for drug users. Harm-reduction […]

SAM 04/26/2024 Friday Fact: Marijuana Use Disorder Rates by Race in 2021 and 2022

Table 5.5B in the 2022 National Survey on Drug Use and Health report showed the marijuana use disorder rates by race, for people aged 12 and older, in 2021 and 2022. Between 2021 and 2022, the rates increased for Asians, Hispanics, Whites, the America National Trend (ANT), and African Americans. The race where the rate […]

Weed the people: recreational marijuana on the ballot in November

The Florida Supreme Court ruled the proposed constitutional amendment could stay on the ballot, despite pushback from attorney general Ashley Moody who argued the amendment would confuse voters. Getting Amendment 3 on the ballot was expensive. More than $40 million to back the amendment came from Trulieve, the medical marijuana company with a big footprint […]

El Paso County continues to lead Colorado in medical marijuana cardholders and sales

Opponents, including the group Smart Approaches to Marijuana, say legalization of marijuana has undermined physical and mental health, with data that shows such effects as IQ loss, depression, suicide, psychosis, stroke and schizophrenia. Also of concern, the organization points to consequences to public safety, such as impairment while driving, and negative effects on education and employment, particularly […]

It’s time to stop celebrating April 20 as a day for marijuana

“Increased car crashes. More kids and adults high every day,” Sabet told me. “The stench of highly potent ‘skunk-weed’ permeating our major cities. 4/20 isn’t something to celebrate.” Sabet knows a thing or two about drugs, specifically marijuana. He is a former White House drug policy adviser to Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and […]

Republicans’ War Against Pot Is Back On

Marijuana advocates have seen years of progress on legalization. But three of the most prominent Republicans in the country are signaling the fight’s not done. Years of progress in the push for legal marijuana is hitting a sudden wall of opposition, thanks to a trio of potential future Republican presidential candidates. Over the last month, […]

SAM 4/19/2024 Friday Fact: Top 10 U.S. States by Annual Marijuana Use Among Youth (Aged 12-17) in 2021-2022

The SAMSHA 2021-2022 NSDUH: Model-Based Estimated Prevalence For States provides estimates of drug use at the state level. Their survey spans 2021 and 2022, rather than only one year, because they needed a sufficiently large sample size for all states.   Based on this, we looked at the prevalence of past-year marijuana use among the […]

The Denver Gazette: Don’t celebrate Colorado’s pot predators

The pot propagators of today can’t seem to agree on the origin of the annual “4/20” observance that is coming up Saturday — the backstory has various versions — and the marijuana-muddled minds that thought it up in the first place probably don’t remember. Whatever the dubious date is supposed to signify, permit us to […]

Florida to Consider Legalization of Marijuana Amidst Alarming Evidence of Harm

On April 1st, The Florida Supreme Court announced that a proposed constitutional amendment (Initiative #22-05) to legalize marijuana’s recreational use will appear on November ballots (South Dakotans will also see it). 60% of voters have to say yes for this to pass. So far, 13 states have legalized marijuana for medical use and 24 states have done so […]

SAM 4/12/2024 Friday Fact: Delta-8 THC Exposures Among Age Groups in 2022

America’s Poison Centers 2022 Annual Report of the National Poison Data System shows Delta-8 THC exposures among age groups. Overall, there were 3,358 Delta-8 THC exposures in 2022. Americans aged 19 or younger accounted for 56% of all Delta-8 THC exposures in 2022––those 12 or younger accounted for more than 40% of these exposures. Here’s […]

Governor approves medical marijuana protections for public sector employees

Governor Glenn Youngkin approved employment protections for public sector workers on Monday, April 8. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, roughly 740,000 people in the Commonwealth work for the government. An original law passed in 2021 protected employee rights to use medical marijuana but didn’t specifically include public servants like firefighters, something JM Pedini, development […]

Only 3 states have passed recreational weed ballot measures by more than 60%. Will FL be next?

As the campaign to get recreational cannabis legalized in Florida moves into its next phase, opponents and advocates of the proposal are operating under the same premise: The measure is likely to receive at least majority support by the voters in November. But that’s not good enough in the Sunshine State, which requires more than […]

Does America have a marijuana crisis?

Kevin A. Sabet, the founder of Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM), is on a mission to educate the public on the acute dangers the substance presents to America.  Read the article HERE.