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Local groups push back against marijuana ballot measures

Opponents of legalization say public perception hasn’t caught up with mounting health concerns Before the 1990s, a typical marijuana joint contained less than 2 percent of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC)—the psychoactive component that gives cannabis users a high. Today, individuals smoke or vape plants with a 17 percent to 28 percent THC potency, and many edibles, oils, […]

PROTECT ARKANSAS KIDS, SMART APPROACHES TO MARIJUANA ACTION FILE LEGAL MOTIONS TO INTERVENE IN PENDING STATE SUPREME COURT CASE

Motion Follows Ruling by the Arkansas Secretary of State that Found Legalization Proponents Did Not Follow Election Rules (LITTLE ROCK, AR) – This week Protect Arkansas Kids, in conjunction with national public health policy organization Smart Approaches to Marijuana Action (SAM Action), filed legal motions to intervene in the pending Arkansas Supreme Court case over whether the […]

Florida prepares to vote on legalizing recreational marijuana usage

When the Florida Supreme Court in April approved a measure for the November statewide ballot that would legalize recreational marijuana use, the stage was set for a monumental battle between those who think legalization is long overdue and those who oppose it on constitutional, health, safety or other grounds. If Amendment 3 on the Florida […]

CBO REPORT CONFIRMS SAFER BANKING ACT WOULD INCREASE FEDERAL BUDGET DEFICIT 

Taxpayers Lose on Both Health and Fiscal Responsibility  (WASHINGTON, DC) – Pro-drug legislation that would put the addiction industry on steroids took a blow with the latest Congressional Budget Office (CBO) report, which finds that the so-called “SAFER Banking” Act would increase the federal deficit by $65 million between 2024-2034 if it were enacted this year. According […]

CALIFORNIA’S POT CAFES A SETBACK FOR DECADES OF PROGRESS ON CLEAN INDOOR AIR

Comparisons to Amsterdam-Style Cafés Fail to Reflect Critical Safety Regulations (SACRAMENTO, CA) – Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) President Dr. Kevin Sabet, a former Obama White House drug policy advisor, released the following statement today in response to California Governor Gavin Newsom’s signing of Assembly Bill 1775, which will allow commercial marijuana shops to prepare and serve […]

Washington Post: Opinion – Would you vote based on a national marijuana policy?Washington Post:

Robert Gebelhoff’s Sept. 18 op-ed misses a critical point: Aligning federal and state laws is not about opening new markets but ensuring existing ones are safer. The bipartisan States 2.0 Act offers a pragmatic solution by allowing states to regulate cannabis as they see fit, while keeping it out of states that oppose legalization. It’s easy to argue that […]

Law360: New Report Urges Feds To Take Larger Role In Pot Policy

The rise of state-sanctioned cannabis markets amid the absence of federal regulation has prioritized politics intended to launch marijuana sales over those focused on public health….. Read more HERE.

NATIONAL ACADEMIES’ STUDY FINDS STATE MARIJUANA POLICIES FAIL TO PROTECT PUBLIC HEALTH; PREDATORY INDUSTRY VICTIMIZING COMMUNITIES OF COLOR, YOUNG PEOPLE

Report Calls on Federal Government, States, Tribal Nations to Advance Policies that Reduce Access to Dangerous, Psychoactive Drugs (WASHINGTON, DC) – Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) President Dr. Kevin Sabet issued the following statement today in response to the National Academies release of its “Cannabis Policy Impacts Public Health and Health Equity” Consensus Study Report: “Despite a […]

SAM Friday Fact 09/27/2024: After Legalizing Medical Marijuana, South Dakota Reports More Marijuana-Related ED Visits, Hospitalizations, and Poison Control Calls

The Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, a federally-funded coalition of law enforcement agencies, warned, “following medical marijuana legalization in South Dakota, hospitals observed an increase in emergency department visits and hospitalizations for marijuana complications/poisonings.” Specifically, from 2020 to 2022, South Dakota saw a 53% increase in marijuana-related ED visits, a 57% increase in hospitalizations, […]

Sabet in Newsweek: Voters Should Know the Truth About These Marijuana Myths

Vice President Kamala Harris and former president Donald Trump are trying to convince American voters that their vision for the future of the nation should be the chosen path forward. Whether it’s the ballot measures to legalize recreational marijuana in Florida, South Dakota, and North Dakota; ballot measures related to medical marijuana in Nebraska and Arkansas; or the Biden […]

Is America turning its back on the great legal weed experiment?

Kevin Sabet, a former White House drug policy adviser who worked with three presidents, said the impact of legal marijuana had been disastrous. “We expected negative consequences to pile up over a 20 to 30-year time span,” he said. “Now, in ten years, we’re seeing what we thought we were going to see in two […]

SAM Friday Fact 09/20/2024: Sharp Increase in Reports of Marijuana Exposures Since Medical Marijuana Legalization in Oklahoma

Oklahoma legalized medical marijuana in 2018, which has been associated with an increase in the number of marijuana-related exposure reports to the Oklahoma Poison Center. Oklahoma Watch reported, “In 2022, 583 cases of accidental marijuana consumption were reported to the Oklahoma Poison Center. Almost half involved a child under 6 and most involved edibles.” Citing […]