#NORML #News @WeedConnection

Congress: Bipartisan Legislation Introduced to Facilitate Expungements for Those with State-Level Cannabis Convictions

Washington, DC: Representatives Dave Joyce (R-OH) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) have introduced legislation to incentivize state and local governments to expunge the criminal records of those who have previously been convicted of marijuana offenses.

Their bill, entitled The Harnessing Opportunities by Pursuing Expungement (HOPE) Act, seeks to appropriate $20 million to the US Attorney General for the purposes of financially assisting states and local governments with the process of reviewing and expunging cannabis convictions.

"This bipartisan effort represents the growing consensus to reform marijuana policies in a manner that addresses the harms inflicted by prohibition," said NORML Political Director Justin Strekal. "It provides cash assistance for states and localities that are wisely choosing to remove these stigmatizing records. There is no justification for continuing to prevent tens of millions of Americans from fully participating in their community and workforce simply because they bear the burden of a past marijuana conviction."

Legislatures in over a dozen states have enacted laws explicitly facilitating the expungement of low-level cannabis convictions. State officials have vacated an estimated 2.2 million marijuana-related convictions under these laws over the past two years.

"Having been both a public defender and a prosecutor, I have seen first-hand how cannabis law violations can foreclose a lifetime of opportunities ranging from employment to education to housing," said Rep. Dave Joyce. "By helping states establish and improve expungement programs for minor cannabis offenses, the HOPE Act will pave the way for expanded economic opportunities to thrive alongside effective investments to redress the consequences of the War on Drugs."

Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez added, "As we continue to advocate for the decriminalization and legalization of marijuana, this bipartisan bill will provide localities the resources they need to expunge drug charges that continue to hold back Americans, disproportionately people of color, from employment, housing and other opportunities."

To contact your lawmakers in support of The HOPE Act, please visit NORML"s Take Action Center.

Analysis: Cannabis Use Not Associated with Increased Risk of Adverse Perioperative Outcomes

Ottawa, Canada: Surgery patients with a history of moderate cannabis use are no more likely to experience adverse perioperative outcomes than are those with no history of use, according to data presented at the 2021 Meeting of the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine.

Canadian researchers assessed surgical outcomes among a cohort of cannabis users and non-users at a single institution over a 14-month period. After controlling for potential confounders – such as age, sex, and surgery type – investigators identified no statistically significant differences among the two patient groups.

"Our results do not demonstrate a convincing association between self-reported cannabis use and either major surgical outcomes or [post-operative] pain management," one of the study's researchers told Anesthesiology News.

In some US jurisdictions, patients with a history of medical cannabis use have been denied access by hospitals to certain surgical procedures, like organ transplants, despite any evidence indicating that they are at higher risk for experiencing adverse outcomes.

Separate analyses have previously identified a correlation between patients with a history of cannabis use and lower in-hospital mortality among those with COPD, congestive heart failure, cancer, pancreatitis, HIV, burn-related injuries, traumatic brain injuries, and other types of severe trauma.

A poster of the study, "Effect of preoperative cannabis use on perioperative outcomes: A retrospective cohort study," is available online.

National Poll: Marijuana Legalization Supported by Majorities of All Age Groups

Washington, DC: Majorities of those ages 18 and older say that "the recreational use of marijuana should be made legal in the United States," according to nationwide polling data compiled by YouGov America.

Overall, 57 percent of respondents backed legalization, while 27 percent opposed it. Support was strongest among Democrats (70 percent), those respondents between the ages of 25 and 44 years old (62 percent), and Independents (61 percent).

Only 40 percent of Republican respondents who participated in the survey endorsed legalization. Forty-four percent opposed it.

The polling data is consistent with prior surveys showing majority support for legalizing cannabis among US adults, though recent polls by Gallup and others have identified greater levels of public support.

Study: Inhalation of CBD-Dominant Cannabis Does Not Negatively Influence Fitness to Drive

Bern, Switzerland: The inhalation of CBD-dominant cannabis flowers does not influence subjects' reaction time, concentration, balance, time perception, or other skills associated with driving ability, according to data published in the journal Forensic Sciences Research.

A team of Swiss researchers assessed the influence of either CBD-dominant cannabis (16.6 percent CBD and 0.9 percent THC) or placebo on a variety of neurocognitive and psychomotor skills. Researchers observed "no symptoms of impairment" and "no significant impact on driving ability" in study subjects who inhaled CBD-dominant cigarettes.

Despite showing no impairment of performance, several subjects did nonetheless test positive for trace levels of THC in their blood 45 minutes after smoking. Authors cautioned that subjects' elevated THC levels would place them in violation of certain traffic safety per se laws that criminalize the operation of a motor vehicle with detectable quantities of THC or THC metabolites in the driver's bloodstream.

Numerous studies have confirmed that the presence of THC in blood is not predictive of psychomotor impairment. As a result, NORML opposes the imposition of THC per se thresholds for cannabinoids in traffic safety legislation, opining: "The sole presence of THC and/or its metabolites in blood, particularly at low levels, is an inconsistent and largely inappropriate indicator of psychomotor impairment in cannabis consuming subjects. … Lawmakers would be advised to consider alternative legislative approaches to address concerns over DUI cannabis behavior that do not rely solely on the presence of THC or its metabolites in blood or urine as determinants of guilt in a court of law. Otherwise, the imposition of traffic safety laws may inadvertently become a criminal mechanism for law enforcement and prosecutors to punish those who have engaged in legally protected behavior and who have not posed any actionable traffic safety threat."

Full text of the study, "Impact of smoking cannabidiol (CBD)-rich marijuana on driving ability," appears in Forensic Sciences Research.

Survey: IBD Patients Frequently Report Using Medical Cannabis

San Juan, Puerto Rico: More than a quarter of patients diagnosed with Inflammatory Bowel Disease report having used cannabis therapeutically, according to survey data published in the Puerto Rico Health Sciences Journal.

A team of investigators affiliated with the University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine surveyed IBD patients about their use of medical marijuana. Medical cannabis products are legal in Puerto Rico for patients with certain inflammatory bowel diseases, such as Crohn's.

Twenty-seven percent of survey respondents affirmed having consumed cannabis for medical purposes. The majority of those who did so (68 percent) said that cannabis improved their symptoms. Most (78 percent) did not discuss their cannabis use with their primary care physician.

The findings are consistent with those of other surveys showing that a significant percentage of IBD patients acknowledged using cannabis and gaining relief from it.

Full text of the study, "Knowledge, perception, and use of cannabis therapy in patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease," appears in the Puerto Rico Health Sciences Journal.

Analysis: Plant-Derived Cannabinoids Provide Relief from Neuropathic Pain

Los Angeles, CA: The use of either herbal cannabis or medicines containing plant-derived cannabinoids is associated with significant reductions in patients' neuropathic pain, according to a review of placebo-controlled clinical trial data published in the Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine.

Researchers with the University of Southern California reviewed data from 17 placebo-controlled clinical trials involving 861 neuropathic pain patients. Patients in the trials consumed a variety of cannabis-related products, including whole-plant cannabis, plant-derived cannabis medicines (e.g., Sativex), oral CBD, and/or synthetic cannabinoids (e.g., dronabinol).

Authors reported that patients receiving either whole-plant cannabis containing THC or plant-derived medicines containing both THC and CBD received significant improvements in pain intensity, while subjects administered other cannabinoids (e.g., CBD and CBDV) and/or synthetic cannabinoids (e.g., dronabinol and CT-3) did not. Most commonly reported side-effects among patients in the trials were anxiety, sedation, and dizziness.

Investigators concluded, "THC/CBD and THC interventions provide statistically significant improvements in pain intensity in NP patients and [are] more likely to provide a 30 percent reduction of NP [neuropathic pain] when smoked or vaped at different concentrations (3.56 percent to 9.4 percent THC) or using a spray (THC 2.5-2.7 mg and CBD 2.5 mg per 100mL) compared to placebo. … Additional long-term studies with more uniform study parameters are needed to achieve more clinically relevant recommendations."

Full text of the study, "Efficacy of cannabis-based medications compared to placebo for the treatment of chronic neuropathic pain: A systematic review with meta-analysis," appears in the Journal of Dental Anesthesia and Pain Medicine.