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London, United Kingdom: Patients with attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) exhibit sustained improvements in their symptoms following the use of cannabis products, according to data published in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology Reports.

British investigators assessed the safety and efficacy of plant-derived cannabis products (either oils, flower, or a combination of both) in a cohort of 68 patients enrolled in the UK Medical Cannabis Registry. Participants possessed a doctor’s authorization to access cannabis products. (Since 2018, specialists have been permitted to prescribe cannabis-based medicinal products to patients unresponsive to conventional medications.) Authors assessed the efficacy of cannabis at one, three, six, and twelve months.

Researchers reported improvements in patients’ anxiety, sleep quality, and overall health-related quality of life following cannabis treatment. Over one-third of patients ceased taking at least one ADHD prescription drug medication over the course of the study.

The study’s authors concluded: “This case series is the first of its kind in assessing the clinical outcome of patients from the UKMCR with a primary diagnosis of ADHD prescribed CBMPs [cannabis-based medicinal products] for up to 12 months. This study reports that treatment with CBMPs was associated with improvements in general HRQoL [health-related quality of life] after 1, 3, and 6, months, in addition to anxiety and sleep quality after 1, 3, 6, and 12 months. These results suggest that CBMPs may play a role in alleviating symptoms and co-morbid anxiety and sleep disruption associated with ADHD.”

Prior studies assessing the use of cannabis products in patients enrolled in the UK registry have reported them to be effective for those suffering from chronic pain, post-traumatic stress, depression, generalized anxiety, migraine, inflammatory bowel disease, and other afflictions.

Full text of the study, “An analysis of clinical outcomes of medicinal cannabis therapy for attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder,” appears in Neuropsychopharmacology Reports.

Congressional Representatives Introduce Legislation Protecting State Marijuana Laws From Federal Interference

Washington, DC: A bipartisan coalition of House lawmakers have introduced legislation, the Strengthening the Tenth Amendment Through Entrusting States (STATES) Act, protecting state-level marijuana legalization laws and allowing for the interstate commerce of cannabis products between legal states.

“The current federal approach to cannabis policy infringes on the rights of states to implement their own laws, stifling critical medical research, hurting legitimate businesses, and diverting vital law enforcement resources needed elsewhere,” said Rep. David Joyce (R-OH), co-chair of the Congressional Cannabis Caucus and the lead sponsor of the bill. “The STATES Act does what every federal bill should do – help all 50 states succeed. This bill respects the will of the states that have legalized cannabis in some form and allows them to implement their own policies without fear of repercussion from the federal government.”

Congressman Joyce is joined by Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR), Troy Carter (D-LA), Rep. Lori Chavez-Remer (R-OR), and Brian Mast (R-FL). A more limited version of the STATES Act was initially introduced in Congress in 2018.

The STATES Act is one of several House bills, including the States Reform Act and the Marijuana Opportunity, Reinvestment and Expungement (MORE) Act, that seek to remove marijuana from the scheduling system established by the Controlled Substances Act. However, it is unlikely that newly elected House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) will prioritize any of these measures. Representative Johnson has repeatedly voted against proposed legislative changes in federal marijuana policy, and he has criticized Democratic leadership for advancing cannabis reform measures, particularly The MORE Act.

Missouri: 100,000 Marijuana Convictions Expunged Following Legalization

Columbia, MO: State officials over the past year have expunged the records of more than 100,000 marijuana-related cases, according to data highlighted by Missouri NORML.

Provisions included in the state’s voter-approved adult-use legalization law, which took effect on December 8, 2022, provided a one-year timeline for the expungement of marijuana-related convictions. Since then, over 100,000 cases have been expunged, says Dan Viets – a NORML Board Member and a co-author of the law.

“This automatic expungement of marijuana cases is one of the most significant parts of Article XIV,” he said. “In addition to stopping approximately 20,000 marijuana arrests each year, the law now requires state government to undo much of the damage which was inflicted on hundreds of thousands of Missourians during the past 100 years.”

Viets predicted that additional cases would be expunged in the future. “The courts are going to need more time to finish the job, and in fact, it might be years before all the cases from the past century are expunged,” Viets acknowledged. “We’ve had more than 100 years of marijuana prohibition in Missouri. Many of the older cases have never been put on a database. So, it’s going to take a lot of physical work to locate those paper records in boxes and attics and go through them.”

Twenty-four states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws providing explicit pathways to either expunge (or otherwise set aside) the records of those with low-level marijuana convictions. According to publicly available data compiled by NORML, state and local officials have issued over 100,000 pardons and more than 1.7 million marijuana-related expungements since 2018.

Review the full text of the NORML Report, Marijuana Pardons and Expungements: By the Numbers.

Georgia: DEA Sends Warning Letters to Independent Pharmacies Seeking To Dispense State-Licensed Cannabis Products

Washington, DC: A recent letter from the US Drug Enforcement Administration is warning pharmacies that they may not legally engage in the dispensing of non-FDA-approved marijuana products.

The letter, dated November 27th, comes just weeks after several Georgia pharmacies applied with the state’s Board of Pharmacy to dispense state-approved plant-derived low-THC products.

Low-THC/high CBD products have been legal to possess under state law since 2015. However, regulators failed to approve licensed providers or dispensaries until earlier this year. Last month, a handful of independent pharmacies reportedly began dispensing cannabis products to qualified patients. About 14,000 Georgians are registered to access cannabis products for a variety of ailments, including autism, cancer, Crohn’s disease, seizure disorders, and Tourette syndrome.

The DEA letter states: “A DEA-registered pharmacy may only dispense controlled substances in Schedules II-V of the Controlled Substances Act. Neither marijuana nor THC can lawfully be possessed, handled, or dispensed by any DEA-registered pharmacy.”

By contrast, the letter acknowledges that products derived from hemp plants containing 0.3 percent THC or less may be sold on store shelves because they are no longer regulated under the Controlled Substances Act.

Local news outlets have reported that some pharmacies have abandoned plans to dispense low-THC products after receiving the letter.

Regulators pushed to allow independent pharmacies to stock plant-derived cannabis products because there are so few licensed dispensaries currently operating in the state.

Ohio: Lawmakers Adjourn for 2023 Without Advancing Legislation Modifying State’s Newly Approved Adult-Use Legalization Law

Columbus, OH: Lawmakers held their final hearings of 2023 without taking any further legislative action on bills to modify the state’s voter-approved adult-use legalization law.

Fifty-seven percent of voters favored the ballot measure (Issue 2) in November. The law took effect on December 7th. However, because the measure was put before voters as a statutory question rather than a constitutional amendment, state lawmakers can amend or repeal its provisions.

Earlier this month, Senate President Matt Huffman introduced legislation that sought to repeal much of the law. That plan was met with resounding resistance from voters, pundits, and members of House leadership. (A NORML Action Alert urging lawmakers to respect the majority of Ohio voters’ will was sent to lawmakers over 7,500 times in 72 hours.) Senators eventually approved substitute language that largely preserves adults’ ability to possess and home-cultivate cannabis, but also prohibits Ohioans’ ability to gift marijuana to one another, amend tax rates, and impose a low THC cap on marijuana concentrates, among other changes. House members have yet to take up the Senate’s proposal and are considering their own legislation to modify certain aspects of the new law.

Lawmakers in both chambers are anticipated to revisit the issue when they reconvene in January.

Any modifying legislation passed by lawmakers will not take effect until 90 days after it is signed into law.

Cleveland: City Officials Ending Pre-Employment Testing for Cannabis

Cleveland, OH: City officials have removed pre-employment drug screening requirements for many public employees.

Officials announced the municipal policy change on Thursday, the same day provisions of a voter-approved marijuana legalization measure (Issue 2) took effect.

Under the new rules, public employees will only undergo pre-employment drug tests if they apply for certain safety-sensitive positions, such as fire-fighters, police officers, and emergency responders.

“Pre-employment screening can often create obstacles in filling open positions by preventing otherwise qualified candidates from even applying,” city officials stated in a press release. “These policy updates are more cost-effective and will ultimately help us widen the applicant pool for several city positions.”

Several other municipalities – including Atlanta, Baltimore, Philadelphia, and St. Louis – have enacted similar ordinances. Michigan, Nevada, and Washington have passed legislation halting pre-employment marijuana testing statewide. Several other states -- including California, Connecticut, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, New York, and Rhode Island -- have enacted broader workplace protections limiting employers’ ability to test for or sanction employees for their cannabis use while off the job.

Ohio’s new marijuana law permits adults to consume cannabis in private, but it does not amend workplace drug testing policies.