420 with CNW — DC Mayor Enacts Measure Allowing Patients to Self-Certify as Medical Cannabis Patients

Dozens of states in the United States have now legalized medical cannabis use. In most of these territories, qualifying patients have to receive a recommendation from their doctors before accessing medical marijuana. In Washington, DC, however, patients will now be able to certify themselves as medical cannabis patients without a physician’s recommendation after the mayor recently signed emergency legislation into law. The district council approved the measure unanimously last week in a 13-0 vote.

The emergency bill effectively allows the council to work around a congressional rider that forbids DC from using federal dollars to launch a recreational cannabis market. Councilmembers Mary Cheh and Kenyan McDuffie first introduced the bill.

Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser said that the legislation would build on efforts by Washington lawmakers to create a patient-centric medical cannabis program. She stated that allowing more patients to access medical marijuana when needed and leveling the playing field for licensed medical marijuana sellers will protect the residents, provide opportunities for local businesses and provide much-needed clarity.

Mayor Bowser applauded the district council for approving the legislation, calling it an innovative solution to the complex issues that affect the district’s medical cannabis sector. Furthermore, she added that she was looking forward to working with the council and the Alcoholic Beverage Regulation Administration (ABRA) on future comprehensive and permanent medical cannabis reform.

District Council Chairman Phil Mendelson introduced a similar bill that would have facilitated the self-certification process a while back, but DC lawmakers voted it down in April. The bill had received criticism because of provisions that would have given law enforcement leeway to crack down on unlicensed businesses that were taking advantage of current policies to “gift” cannabis to customers who purchased unrelated services and gifts.

Faced with claims that these provisions could further the harms caused by the war on drugs while benefiting existing industry interests, Mendelson said that the bill said nothing about criminal penalties for such establishments. He argued that such businesses weren’t only a gray market, but they are illegal and are eroding the customer bases of licensed medical marijuana businesses. Mendelson said that his measure would make it easier for licensed medical cannabis businesses to maintain their customer bases. However, the law failed to advance.

The emergency legislation that was recently signed into law does not contain these enforcement provisions. However, it notes that customers often have little or no barriers to accessing cannabis from “gray” market suppliers.

The growing frustration about the hindrances to the cannabis industry originating from the federal government’s stance isn’t restricted to sector players such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS). Even jurisdictions such as Washington, DC, are reaching the limit of their patience and have started finding workarounds to the outdated federal restrictions, as exemplified by the law discussed above.

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CNW420 spotlights the latest developments in the rapidly evolving cannabis industry through the release of two informative articles each business day. Our concise, informative content serves as a gateway for investors interested in the legalized cannabis sector and provides updates on how regulatory developments may impact financial markets. Articles are released each business day at 4:20 a.m. and 4:20 p.m. Eastern – our tribute to the time synonymous with cannabis culture. If marijuana and the burgeoning industry surrounding it are on your radar, CNW420 is for you! Check back daily to stay up-to-date on the latest milestones in the fast -changing world of cannabis.

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420 with CNW — NIDA Seeks Contractor to Grow, Analyze 4,000 kg of Marijuana

For decades, researchers who were able to secure cannabis research permits were required by federal law to source cannabis flower from a farm at the University of Mississippi. Researchers have long complained that the cannabis produced at the university was subpar and impacted research into the plant’s potential benefits and risks.

In 2019, a study by University of Northern Colorado researchers revealed that the cannabis grown at the University of Mississippi was genetically closer to hemp than the cannabis sold in commercial dispensaries. Consequently, researchers, reform activists and stakeholders have been pressuring regulators to allow the use of commercial cannabis in scientific studies. Regulators have relented in recent years and licensed more cultivators to provide cannabis for research.

The National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) is now seeking a contractor that is capable of growing and analyzing 4 million grams (4,000 kg) of cannabis. Last week, NIDA published a request for proposal (RFP) stating that it was looking for contractors that could grow, test and roll joints with approximately 4 million grams of marijuana over a period of five years. If the agency awards a company with such a contract, it would be the end of the University of Mississippi’s 50-year monopoly on the cultivation of marijuana for research.

Applicants interested in securing the contract will have to possess Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA)-issued Schedule I research registration to qualify for the bulk cannabis supply deal. The RFP says that the main goal of the contract is to provide materials for cannabis research, and it requires a source that can consistently produce cannabis that is contaminant free and has predictable potency.

The RFP also states that the contractor will be tasked with producing or procuring cannabis, cannabis extract, or any other marijuana-derived materials for use in clinical and basic research. The contractor will also be required to run qualitative and quantitative analyses, provide stability determination and offer recommendations for how to store cannabis that is approved for research. This contractor would have to supply enough cannabis to support a wide variety of cannabis research projects, with the proposal stating that they would need a production capacity of around 8,800 pounds of cannabis over the five-year period.

The contractor would have to procure 1,100 pounds in the first year, which is equal to around 1.6 million standard joints. Over the entire five-year period, running from March 23, 2023, to March 22, 2028, the contractor would be required to provide 12.5 million joints worth of cannabis.

Hopefully, the steps being taken by NIDA and other federal health agencies will eventually result in regulatory changes that could make the legal landscape in which licensed marijuana companies such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) operate a little more conducive to the success of the industry.

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420 with CNW — New iPhone App Update Allows Users to Search How Cannabis Interacts with Other Drugs

iPhone users will now be able to use their mobile phones to learn about how cannabis interacts with other drugs after the tech giant issued a software update that allows its customers to track medications. Apple has kept its eye on cannabis reform efforts over the years, steadily revising its internal policies to make sure they align with the changing laws.

With more people than ever using marijuana for recreational and medical purposes, Apple has rolled out the technology to help these users learn about drugs that could interact with marijuana. They will be able to do this via Apple’s Health App, an application that gathers health data from the Apple Watch and iPhone into one centralized and convenient location. A medications feature will allow users to build and manage a list of medications, and track them. American users will only have to point their phone cameras at the label of a specific medication and the app will alert them if it will interact with any of the medications they are already taking.

Users will also be able to add cannabis, alcohol and tobacco to their list of medications to see if there are possible interactions between medications on their list. According to a footnote on the tech giant’s press release, the Health App will use evidence-based content from health and science information publisher Elsevier to provide users with information on medication interactions.

This update is especially important now that millions of Americans are using cannabis. Despite limited research on cannabis drug interactions, some studies have found that the plant can interact with pharmaceutical medications such as warfarin. Additionally, Drugs.com estimates that there are about 400 known interactions between marijuana and prescription medications and categorizes 26 of these interactions as major.

Even as dozens of states have legalized either recreational or medical cannabis, a majority of them have passed labeling policies that require cannabis producers to warn customers against potential health risks on their product labels. However, most of these warnings have focused on side effects such as drowsiness and the danger of cannabis-impaired driving. In Florida, producers in the medical cannabis market are required to include a list of possible drug interactions on labels.

Apple still cautions against using the Medications feature in the Health App as an alternative to professional medical advice. The tech giant says that even though medications often provide a list of possible interactions on their labels, users should make sure they consult a medical professional before making any decisions involving their health.

With this new iPhone software update, the users of marijuana from licensed manufacturers such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) can access pointers about any potential interactions that could exist between marijuana and their other medications, thereby enabling them to make informed choices.

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420 with CNW — Oklahoma Supreme Court Shoots Down Two Challenges to Cannabis Legalization Measure

Last week, the Oklahoma Supreme Court rejected a pair of legal challenges against a cannabis legalization proposal. The court afforded the petitioners a small window to request for a rehearing as it prepares to make a final ruling in the coming week on whether the proposal can be brought before voters this year.

The deadline to send in challenges against the proposed amendment to the constitution closed earlier in the week. Four challenges were filed, including two concerning the language of the ballot title, and two that dealt with signature certification, which were shot down by the court.

One of the rejected challenges came from Mike Reynolds, a former legislator from Oklahoma, who claimed that a state law that was recently enacted on election integrity made it almost impossible to review signatures. In its ruling, the court stated that Reynolds had been able to access the petition after he had filled out his application as per the statute, noting that his request for more days to challenge the proposal after he’d reviewed the signatures would violate the plain language and legislative intent of the statute.

The other dismissed challenge was made by Paul Tay, a controversial marijuana activist who alleged that signatures gathered on sovereign Indian land weren’t valid. He made a similar complaint against a legalization measure led by another campaign In its ruling, the court stated that it had lost patience with the activist, noting that he had a history of filing original proceedings, the majority of which had no legitimate basis legally.

In addition to the response, the Oklahoma Supreme Court revoked Tay’s pauperis status, which had enabled him to file complaints in the past without paying any fee.

Oklahomans for Sensible Marijuana Laws (OSML) submitted more signatures than required to qualify its legalization initiative in July. The organization also accepted revisions to the ballot title language from the state’s attorney general before the Office of the Secretary of State certified the signatures in August.

In a statement, Yes on 820’s campaign director, Michelle Tilley, stated that the group had been confident that the court would reject any frivolous complaints, noting that the court had done that by dismissing the complaints filed during the protest period.

The remaining complaints, include one which argues that the ballot title’s language is misleading because it doesn’t sufficiently inform voters about policy impacts of the measure. For example, the lack of disclosure about provisions for decriminalization for individuals aged 21 and under and firearm-related implications makes the title misleading.

The other complaint was made by Jed Green, a marijuana activist who also maintained that there were omissions in the title of the ballot.

If the ballot measure is cleared by the top court in the state, voters could have a chance to approve it and pave the way for licensed cannabis companies similar to the likes of Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) to set up shop in Oklahoma and address the needs of consumers there.

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420 with CNW — Why Marijuana Is Growing in Popularity While Cigarettes Lose Out

Despite being prohibited in most areas for the past couple of decades, cannabis has been the most-used drug in the world for quite a while. As of July 2022, an estimated 200 million people used cannabis across the globe. Legalization efforts have significantly increased access to the controversial plant, allowing millions to legally purchase and consume cannabis with no legal repercussions.

Dozens of American states, as well as territories around the world, now have legal cannabis markets. As a result, more people than ever are using cannabis, and one industry that has dominated the recreational drug space has begun to feel the heat. According to a pair of recent polls by Gallup, more Americans now smoke marijuana than smoke cigarettes. The surveys also provided more evidence of an ongoing reduction in the number of Americans who smoke cigarettes.

According to a August 2022 Gallup poll, 16% of the survey participants reported smoking marijuana compared to 12% in a similar poll from last year. Although Gallup noted that this increase was not statistically significant, it highlights a growing acceptance of cannabis in American society.

In addition, 11% of Americans who were surveyed in a different poll that was published in July said they had smoked tobacco cigarettes. In comparison, 16% of survey participants said they had indulged in a cigarette in the week in a 2021 poll. It is a significantly larger drop from the 45% of adults who admitted to smoking cigarettes in the 1950s.

Although tobacco is federally legal, it is considered to be more harmful than cannabis and known to cause health issues, including heart and lung disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In fact, one of the reasons cannabis smokers have eclipsed cigarette smokers is that as people are becoming more cognizant of the health effects of smoking cigarettes, more are quitting and fewer are picking the habit up.

The CDC estimates that the number of “active” smokers in America has gone down from 20.9% in 2005 to 12.5% in 2020. Furthermore, the July Gallup poll found that three in 10 nonsmokers used to smoke cigarettes, representing a 30% drop in the Americans who smoke tobacco cigarettes. Ultimately, the number of people who are quitting cigarettes has even eclipsed those who are taking up cannabis, the poll found.

Writing for Gallup, Dr. Frank Newport said it is clear that cigarette use is declining and will become less prevalent as time passes. He touted increased public awareness of the negative health effects of smoking cigarettes as well as ongoing government efforts to curb cigarette use as major reasons behind the decline in smoking. Newport also noted that plenty of states now ban public smoking, making the habit more of an inconvenience than a luxury.

As more people learn about the benefits of marijuana, established entities such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) could find themselves with a much bigger client base to serve in the years to come.

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420 with CNW — White House Reveals President Biden Has No Plans to Act on Cannabis Reform Ahead of Midterms

Last week, the White House suggested that President Joe Biden would not be making any cannabis policy moves ahead of the midterms. When asked about whether Biden would discuss cannabis before the election, Karine Jean-Pierre, the administration’s press secretary, acknowledged that questions on the president’s plans for marijuana policy had come up on numerous occasions in press briefings.

Jean-Pierre reiterated that the president’s position on marijuana remained the same: leave the adult-use legalization of cannabis to the states, reschedule the plant, federally decriminalize it and expunge previous records. This is in addition to explaining that President Biden believed that there were too many individuals who were serving long sentences for nonviolent drug convictions, with a significant number of those being Black and brown.

Jean-Pierre also implied that Prez, Biden had no plans to champion reform prior to the midterm elections, despite the fact that cannabis is a strongly popular issue. This comes a fortnight after the press secretary stated that she did not have anything to speak about with regard to the president’s plans to fulfill his marijuana campaign pledges.

Biden first made public comments on issues involving cannabis in July. At the time, he hadn’t yet been asked about his intentions to act upon his campaign pledge to release individuals who had been incarcerated due to non-violent marijuana offenses. When he did finally comment, Biden replied to the question by highlighting that he didn’t believe individuals needed to be imprisoned over the use of marijuana, noting that his administration would work toward fulfilling his clemency promise. In addition to this, he vaguely hinted at a crime measure he believed could address said issue.

Since his tenure began, the president has received numerous letters from advocates, legislators, celebrities and individuals affected by marijuana criminalization, requesting him to do something about the individuals who are still incarcerated over marijuana.

Recently, several senators, including Cory Booker, Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren, penned a letter to the president expressing their frustration over the administration’s failure to address the harms of cannabis criminalization and help change course using executive clemency authority.

In their letter, the legislators highlighted that the Biden administration’s present stance was harming Americans, depriving them of their ability to use the herb for medical or other purposes and impeding research into the plant.

Despite the administration’s reluctance to make headway on the matter, congressional legislators are still working legislatively to end marijuana criminalization.

For instance, Senator. Booker, Senate Finance Committee Chair Ron Wyden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer recently filed a measure to federally legalize marijuana and promote social equity while also allowing entities such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) to operate in accordance with a uniform federal law rather than the current patchwork of laws at state level.

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420 with CNW — Study Says Pharma Industry Loses Billions as Cannabis Legalization Spreads

Over the past two or so decades, a growing body of scientific research has proved that cannabis has the potential to treat a variety of medical conditions. Even though federal law classifies cannabis as a Schedule I controlled substance with no medical applications, studies have found that the drug can be effective against inflammation, anxiety disorders, chronic pain and high blood pressure, among other things.

As people become more cognizant of the short- and long-term side effects of using pharmaceutical medications, “safer” alternatives such as cannabis have grown increasingly popular. Dozens of states now allow their residents to purchase and consume cannabis for medical purposes, with most people using medical marijuana to alleviate pain.

A first-of-its-kind study has now revealed that the pharmaceutical industry stands to lose almost $10 million a year with each state that legalizes cannabis, costing the industry untold billions of dollars in losses over the next few decades. The research analyzed prescription drug sales and stock return data from more than 500 pharmaceutical companies from 1996 all the way to 2019, focusing on market trends before and after the passage of state medical and recreational cannabis laws. Researchers found that each legalization event had a negative impact on the industry, decreasing stock returns by 1.5 to 2% within days after cannabis reform was passed.

Study authors write that pharmaceutical companies saw their returns falter in the wake of both medical and recreational legalization, with investors in both brand and generic drug makers expecting an average annual sales reduction of $3 billion with each legalization event. This may be because cannabis has appealed to millions of Americans who want a safer, side-effect-free alternative to pharmaceutical medications.

Lots of data-based studies, observational analyses and anecdotal reports have indicated that more people are turning to cannabis as an alternative to conventional prescription drugs such as sleep medication and opioid-based painkillers. In addition, one 2022 study that examined Medicaid data on pharmaceutical prescription drugs found that cannabis reform is often associated with significantly reduced prescription medication use.

But the researchers from the California Polytechnic State University and the University of Mexico say their new study on the economic impact cannabis legalization will have on Big Pharma is completely novel. They say that cannabis will disrupt the pharmaceutical industry for a couple of reasons.

One, cannabis is largely unpatentable, meaning it may be a new generic entrant into the market that could pull patients away from prescription drugs. Second, medical cannabis is versatile and isn’t restricted to treating a limited set of conditions, allowing it to break into several different drug markets at once.

The financial impact on pharmaceutical firms could be massive, the study concludes, stating that each legalization event could end up costing companies around $9.8 billion.

As more health conditions are added onto the list of qualifying conditions for medical marijuana, the sales of cannabis companies such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) look set for a sustained upward trajectory in the years to come if innovation and awareness of consumer needs are consistently kept at the fore.

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420 with CNW — California Legislators Approve Measure Protecting Workers’ Off-Duty Cannabis Use

Earlier last week, legislators in the state of California approved a measure that would prevent firms from penalizing workers who failed drug tests to detect whether an individual had used cannabis in the recent days.

These tests, which usually use hair or urine samples, look for substances the body makes as it breaks down THC. THC is the primary psychoactive compound found in cannabis, which induces a high when consumed. The substances in question are known as metabolites and can remain in an individual’s body for weeks after they have been used. This means that individuals can fail a drug test even if they haven’t consumed marijuana recently.

This measure would prevent workers from being penalized if they fail such drug tests. However, companies can still punish their workers for failing other tests that use saliva to determine whether an individual is high.

The measure has been advanced to the desk of Gov. Gavin Newsom, who will have until the end of September to sign it into law. If approved, the bill would take effect on Jan. 1, 2024. The author of the measure, Assembly member Bill Quirk, stated that nothing in the initiative permitted individuals to go to their workplaces high.

In 1996, the state of California became the first state in the country to legalize medical cannabis use. Two decades later, the state was among the first to legalize the recreational use of cannabis. Despite these historical strides, the state hasn’t made a significant effort to pass laws protecting its workers who use cannabis once they’re off the clock.

Labor unions postulate that punishing employees for doing something legal after work hours is unfair, especially as such use does not interfere with their work responsibilities. The United Food and Commercial Workers Local 324’s secretary-treasurer Matt Bell stated that administering outdated marijuana tests didn’t increase workplace safety and, instead, made employees feel harassed and unsafe at work.

According to the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, 21 states in the country have laws that protect workers who use medical cannabis from discrimination. On the other hand, the states that have laws protecting the rights of their workers to use recreational cannabis include Rhode Island, Montana, Connecticut, New Jersey, New York and Nevada. Once Newsom approves the measure, California will become the seventh state to protect its workers from any punishment if they use marijuana once they’re off the clock.

The enactment of this law could potentially result in an uptick in sales made by California-based companies such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) because customers who once feared losing their jobs may be less hesitant about indulging while in their free time.

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420 with CNW — New York Gives Ex-Convicts First Shot at Opening Recreational Cannabis Businesses

Historically, cannabis has been one of the most criminalized drugs in America. Thanks to the drug war, people who ran afoul of federal cannabis law were policed harshly by law enforcement and given extremely harsh sentences, especially people of color. In fact, research has shown that there is a clear bias in applying cannabis laws, with Black people being four times more likely to be arrested for cannabis use despite near identical use rates with White people.

Now that the war on drugs has been declared an unmitigated failure, and dozens of states across the U.S. are legalizing cannabis, many reform activists and lawmakers believe that social equity and justice should be a core aspect of the growing cannabis industry. They argue that it is inherently unjust for businesses to profit off of cannabis when tons of people had their lives ruined by relatively minor nonviolent convictions, with some of them still incarcerated for these offenses.

In New York, individuals who were convicted of cannabis offenses will have the first crack at the state’s incoming recreational cannabis industry. Of the 19 states that have legalized recreational cannabis, New York will be the first to solely offer the first cannabis dispensary licenses to entrepreneurs with cannabis convictions on their records. Like most cannabis social-equity provisions, this approach is designed to give Black and Brown communities that were disproportionately affected by the drug war a leg up in the multibillion dollar cannabis industry.

Having a criminal record in America can essentially prevent you from participating in society. A record makes it extremely difficult to obtain employment, housing, federal student aid, professional licenses and firearms. According to the executive director of New York’s Office of Cannabis Management, the state is looking to give people who have gone through “significant challenges” due to cannabis convictions a chance to open and operate successful businesses in the cannabis industry.

Other states with adult-use cannabis programs gave existing medical dispensaries the first chance to roll out recreational cannabis, which only gave big operators a chance to get even bigger. And even though places such as Detroit and Illinois used restrictions or lotteries to promote social equity in licensing, these processes are still engulfed in legislative fixes and legal challenges several years later.

New York will avoid this by issuing its first Conditional Adult Retail-Use Dispensary Licenses to New Yorkers with prior cannabis convictions. Successful applicants will be set up with financing and a retail location by the state to help them develop their recreational cannabis businesses. These locations could open their doors to the public by the end of the year.

The marijuana industry and established actors such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) have always believed that legalizing the substance would pave the way for redressing some of the social equity issues observed in the way prohibition laws were enforced. The steps being taken in New York are proof that it is possible to right those wrongs through designing the right legalization policies or laws.

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420 with CNW — How Marijuana Retailers Can Minimize Budtender Turnover

The American cannabis industry has been one of the most prolific job creators in recent times, creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs and generating billions of dollars in sales revenue. Of the entire class of cannabis employees, budtenders are probably the most recognized among cannabis users. This position interacts with customers the most, answering questions about different marijuana strains, medical applications and optimum methods of consumption.

However, the retail cannabis space is currently plagued by a high turnover of budtenders, an issue that could severely affect the industry in the long term. As the front face of cannabis retail stores, budtenders are usually the first point of contact between the customer and the business. To ensure that these individuals convey accurate and up-to-date information to customers, brands and cultivators invest significant amounts of money and time into training and educating budtenders about the products they offer.

The problem is that many budtenders leave soon after receiving this training, costing the companies that initially hired them cash as well as depriving them of much-needed expertise. The president of a California-based cannabis cultivator called Ember Valley says marijuana operators often spend time and resources building relationships with budtenders and similar employees who are on the front lines with the customer, only for them to leave.

A recent report from analytics firm Headset revealed that 55% of budtenders in the United States and Canada who had worked at a retail cannabis establishment in the past year had left “by the end of that time period.” Greenleaf Business Solutions president Mar Rodriguez posits that players in the cannabis sector have to legitimize the employee experience if they wish to retain budtenders.

Thanks to federal prohibition, the state-legal cannabis industry cannot access traditional banking services. This means that many employees in the sector are paid in cash, and many cannabis employers still don’t offer 401(k) plans or online pay stubs. Companies that offer these benefits in the cannabis space are few, Rodriguez says, and accessing these types of financial and banking services tends to be more costly for cannabis businesses compared to other industries.

On average, he estimates, cannabis businesses spend an extra $60,000 annually on payroll and employee services. For companies that simply can’t afford to offer these services, retaining employees can be a challenge. FutureSense CEO Jim Finkelstein believes that good leadership also plays a role in retaining employees, stating that the number-one reason people leave their jobs is because of poor leadership or not being provided enough tools to advance their skill sets.

Finkelstein says that even though companies can plan for high employee turnover by implementing a business strategy called “come, contribute, leave,” this strategy will hurt them in the long term, resulting in increased hiring costs and depriving companies of much-needed labor as well as raking up training costs. He pointed out strategies such as profit sharing and legitimizing employee experience that have been successful at retaining employees.

Since each cannabis company is unique in its internal dynamics, players such as Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) are likely to have their own mechanisms of attracting and retaining employees, including budtenders, who are in high demand within the industry.

NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to Cannabis Strategic Ventures Inc. (OTC: NUGS) are available in the company’s newsroom at http://cnw.fm/NUGS

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