Analysis: Adult-Use Cannabis Sales Have Generated Over $15 Billion in State Tax Revenue
Washington, DC: Tax revenues derived from licensed retail sales of state-legal, adult-use cannabis products totaled approximately $3.8 billion last year – according to an analysis provided by the Marijuana Policy Project.
MPP’s figures do not include revenues derived from the sales of medical cannabis products and/or the collection of state-imposed regulatory fees.
Adult-use sales generated the greatest amount of revenue in California (roughly $1.1 billion), followed by Illinois, Washington, Michigan, and Colorado.
Since 2014, retail sales of adult-use cannabis products have generated $15.1 billion dollars.
“States that have made the decision to legalize and regulate cannabis are benefiting from hundreds of millions in tax revenue each year,” said Toi Hutchinson, President of MPP. “These new streams of revenue are helping to fund crucial social services and programs across the country, such as education, alcohol and drug treatment, veterans’ services, job training, and reinvestment in communities that have been disproportionately affected by the war on cannabis.”
Data compiled in November by the website Leafly.com and Whitney Economics determined that cannabis is the sixth most valuable cash crop in the United States. Another analysis compiled by the two groups reported that the state-licensed cannabis industry employs over 428,000 full-time workers.
The full text of the report, “Cannabis Tax Revenue in States That Regulate Cannabis for Adult Use” is available from MPP.
Federal: Transportation Department Finalizes Rule Authorizing Oral Fluid Drug Testing
Washington, DC: Officials with the US Department of Transportation have finalized a new rule authorizing commercially licensed drivers the option to undergo oral fluid testing as an alternative to urinalysis.
“This additional methodology for drug testing will give employers a choice that will help combat employee cheating on urine drug tests and provide a less intrusive means of achieving the safety goals of the program,” the agency stated in an announcement in the Federal Register.
The forthcoming rule will set a 4 ng/ml cutoff limit for the presence of THC in saliva. The effective date of the new rule is June 1, 2023. However, use of oral fluid testing cannot begin until the US Department of Health and Human Services certifies at least two laboratories to perform saliva screening. To date, no labs have received HHS certification.
Federal transportations laws currently mandate that commercially licensed drivers randomly undergo marijuana urinalysis testing, which detects the presence of the inert carboxy-THC metabolite. The non-psychoactive metabolite is detectable in subjects’ urine for weeks or even months following past exposure.
Since 2020, over 100,000 truck drivers have tested positive for past exposure to marijuana. Those who fail their test are required to enter a ‘return to work’ program, which includes passing a drug test, in order to have their license reinstated. However, only about one-quarter of those with drug test failures have done so — resulting in driver shortages and supply chain issues.
Saliva testing typically identifies residual traces of THC for up to 24 hours following marijuana exposure, a period of time beyond the window of cannabis-related impairment, but one that is far shorter than the timeline associated with urine testing or blood testing.
“While oral swab tests do not necessarily correlate with impairment from cannabis, they are a better predictor of recent use than are urine tests, which can pick up inactive THC metabolites days or weeks after use, and which have been required for truck drivers up until now,” California NORML’s Deputy Director Ellen Komp said. “This long-awaited move by DOT should help with the country’s supply-chain issues, while advancing employment rights for legal and responsible cannabis users without jeopardizing roadside safety.”
NORML has repeatedly argued that employers should not presume that the detection of either THC or its metabolites is evidence of impairment. That is because their presence is not predictive of diminished performance. Alternatively, NORML has called for the expanded use of performance-based tests, like DRUID or Predictive Safety’s AlertMeter.
In recent months, lawmakers in several states – including California and New York — have amended their employment laws so that most state employers may no longer terminate workers solely on the basis on a positive drug test for the presence of THC metabolites.
The full text of the Department’s forthcoming regulations appears in the Federal Register.
Survey: More Than One-Third of Chronic Pain Patients Report Current Use of Medical Cannabis
Oakland, CA: Over a third of Californians suffering from chronic pain acknowledge having consumed cannabis for therapeutic purposes within the past year, according to survey data published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.
Researchers affiliated with Kaiser Permanente and the University of California, San Francisco surveyed a random sampling of pain patients enrolled with one of the state’s largest health care providers.
Thirty-five percent of the patients surveyed said that they had consumed medical cannabis. Nearly ninety percent of them said that they used cannabis primarily to treat pain-related symptoms.
Numerous placebo-controlled trials document the ability of either inhaled or vaporized herbal cannabis to significantly mitigate pain in various patient populations, including those suffering from HIV, diabetes, spinal cord injury, or severe treatment-resistant neuropathy (nerve pain). A 2017 review by the National Academy of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine concluded that “conclusive or substantial evidence” exists for cannabis’ efficacy in patients suffering from chronic pain, stating, “Patients who [are] treated with cannabis or cannabinoids are more likely to experience a clinically significant reduction in pain symptoms.”
Full text of the study, “Cannabis use for medical reasons among patients in a large California health care system after legalization of non-medical use,” appears in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs.
Senate Republicans Block Effort Encouraging the Veterans Administration to Study Cannabis as a Treatment Option for Post-Traumatic Stress
Washington, DC: Republicans blocked a procedural vote that would have advanced legislation, S. 326: the VA Medicinal Cannabis Research Act, to the floor of the United States Senate.
All but eight GOP members voted against the bill’s advancement, assuring that it would not meet the 60 vote threshold necessary to move forward under Senate rules. The measure had previously passed unanimously out of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee with bipartisan support.
The legislation directs the Department of Veterans Affairs to conduct an 18-month observational study to assess the effects of cannabis in veterans suffering from chronic pain and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
Observational trial data published in December reported that patients suffering from post-traumatic stress exhibit “statistically significant improvements” in a variety of domains – including sleep, anxiety, and stress — following their use of cannabis. By contrast, a 2021 clinical trial reported that the inhalation of marijuana flowers provided limited benefits compared to placebo in treating symptoms of PTSD.
Data published earlier this year in the journal JAMA Network Open reported that nearly one in three pain patients residing in states where medical cannabis access is legal have consumed it for pain management. Pain patients who utilize cannabis frequently report decreasing or ceasing their use of opioids.
Survey: Most Physicians Are “Uncomfortable” Integrating Medical Cannabis into Their Patients’ Treatment Regimens
Ann Arbor, MI: A majority of physicians say that they lack the skills to adequately counsel patients on the potential use of medical cannabis, according to survey data published in the journal Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research.
Researchers affiliated with the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor surveyed 244 physicians regarding their willingness to engage in discussions with their patients about cannabis.
Consistent with prior surveys of health care professionals, most respondents perceived themselves as possessing “low knowledge and competence” with respect to the use of medical cannabis. When discussing the issue with their patients, most doctors limited their conversations to those involving cannabis-specific risks rather than safe use practices.
Only a minority of those surveyed acknowledge having ever recommended medical marijuana to their patients. Those doctors that were willing to do so tended to be younger and were more likely to have “completed a formal course on medical cannabis.”
Authors concluded: “Lack of knowledge was most frequently cited as a reason for not making an MC [medical cannabis] recommendation. … Greater integration of MC into medicine and medical education is needed to maximize benefits and minimize risks of MC.”
Numerous surveys of medical professionals – including nurses, pharmacists, clinicians, and other health care practitioners – find that health practitioners are inadequately trained in matters specific to medical cannabis. Survey data published in 2020 reported that fewer than one-in-five patients believe that their primary care providers are sufficiently knowledgeable about cannabis-specific health-related issues.
Full text of the study, “Physicians’ attitudes and practices regarding cannabis and recommending medical cannabis use,” appears in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research.
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