Author: Ben Adlin

[ad_1] During the first year of legal adult-use cannabis sales in Rhode Island, state-licensed businesses sold more than $100 million worth of marijuana products—including almost $70 million in recreational sales. Data recently updated through November by the Rhode Island Department of Business Regulation show that retailers sold $105.0 million in legal cannabis since December 2022. Recreational sales, which began that month, made up about two-thirds of the total, with medical marijuana accounting for the rest. Purchasing activity rose steadily over most of the year in Rhode Island. It peaked in August, which saw the highest aggregate sales, and September, which…

[ad_1] The organizer of a prospective Florida ballot initiative to legalize home cultivation of medical marijuana by patients has withdrawn the proposal, explaining that the campaign raised barely more than $4,000 and couldn’t cover costs associated with trying to qualify the measure. Moriah Barnhart told Marijuana Moment this week that despite some volunteer signature gathering efforts, including at some state-licensed dispensaries, she would be unable to pay the necessary fees to have those signatures validated by state officials. “What happened was we got an influx of signatures that were going to be late, which is $50 to $500 if you…

[ad_1] Backers of a proposed Colorado ballot initiative to allow marijuana users to obtain concealed carry permits for guns appeared at a Denver hearing on Tuesday to discuss comments and potential changes to the measure’s language ahead of submitting it to the secretary of state for review. During the meeting, officials from the Legislative Council Staff and Office of Legislative Legal Services raised a small number of potential issues with the proposal as currently written, asking for clarification and walking through possible changes to the language. The hearing is the latest hoop for organizers to jump through as they attempt…

[ad_1] Tampons infused with CBD “achieved statistically significant pain reduction” in cases of severe cramps and menstrual pain, according to a new study in the Journal of Endometriosis and Uterine Disorders. Authors said the cannabidiol tampons could offer “fewer side effects than anti-inflammatories, while producing a similar pain-relieving effect.” “The findings indicate the potential of CBD-infused tampons as a promising option for managing menstrual pain,” the six-person research team wrote in the study. “Further research and exploration of this innovative product can contribute to the management of primary dysmenorrhea,” a condition involving painful muscle spasms and cramps that affects between…

[ad_1] A Republican lawmaker in New Hampshire has prefiled legislation for the coming session that would legalize three psychedelic substances—psilocybin, LSD and mescaline—for therapeutic use with a healthcare provider’s recommendation. The bill, HB 1693, from Rep. Kevin Verville, would create a regulated psychedelics system for registered patients, with alternative treatment centers (ATCs) set up to produce and dispense the substances. The proposal is modeled after the state’s existing medical cannabis law, under which seven licensed marijuana ATCs currently serve patients. Psychedelics patients would be required to obtain state-issued ID cards, while designated caregivers could purchase and provide the substances to…

[ad_1] New Jersey’s governor and attorney general have announced the recipients of $5.2 million in hospital-based violence-intervention grants funded with revenue from state-legal marijuana. The two politicians said Friday that money for the New Jersey Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Program (NJHVIP) will be distributed to 11 recipients in 10 counties. “Meeting survivors of violence where they are during such a critical time of their healing journey is essential to their well-being,” Gov. Phil Murphy (D) said in a statement. “The New Jersey Hospital-Based Violence Intervention Program is a crucial resource to address both the mental and physical ramifications of violence in…

[ad_1] A proposed ballot measure in Colorado would remove marijuana use as a disqualification for concealed carry permits in the state, potentially allowing people who use the drug to carry concealed firearms in public. The measure, backed by the advocacy group Guns for Everyone, is set for a public hearing on Tuesday morning before the state’s Legislative Council Staff (LCS). After that meeting and any subsequent revisions to the proposal’s text, the campaign would need to file the would-be initiative with the secretary of state before activists could begin gathering the required 124,238 valid voter signatures required to qualify for…

[ad_1] Nearly two years after a top Italian court blocked a referendum on marijuana legalization and psychedelics reform from going before voters, support in the country is building for a narrower, cannabis-only measure that would allow the home cultivation of four plants, the eventual creation of social clubs and the elimination of penalties for consumers. “Despite the defeat we suffered after the collection of signatures with the legal cannabis referendum, we have decided to insist until things change,” Marco Perduca, an advocate and former Italian senator, told supporters in a recent email, according to a translation. Perduca was one of…

[ad_1] As Delaware gears up for adult-use cannabis, sales of which are set to kick off as soon as next year, the state could also dramatically expand its existing medical marijuana program. A bill introduced in the legislature this week would remove the requirement that patients have one of a designated set of qualifying conditions, instead allowing doctors to recommend marijuana for any condition that they believe it could benefit. Additionally, patients 65 or older could self-certify their need for medical cannabis—without any need for a recommendation from a healthcare provider. The bill, HB 285, was introduced Thursday by lead…

[ad_1] Passenger cruise lines like Carnival and Royal Caribbean have policies against marijuana, noting that the substance is illegal in many ports it sails to and that they’re following federal law. But as more people return to the ships, and as more of them come from states where the drug is legal, operators are reportedly taking more extreme measures to detect cannabis and cracking down on people who attempt to use it—including those who simply pack CBD products, which are legal across the U.S. As the Wall Street Journal reported in a story on the trend this week, Carnival Cruise…

[ad_1] A federal appellate panel has denied a motion by lawyers for a Washington State doctor trying to reschedule psilocybin under the federal Controlled Substances Act (CSA). In an order this week, a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit rejected the doctor’s request for a rehearing of an earlier court decision that returned the matter to the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA). While the earlier ruling, in October, technically went against DEA, the court did not send the rescheduling petition to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for review, as lawyers for the doctor had…

[ad_1] As Virginia’s Republican governor and other leaders pursue a plan to bring two professional sports teams—the Washington Wizards and Washington Capitals—to Alexandria, the state’s Democratic Senate leader suggested this week that her support for the plan might be contingent on getting a bill to legalize marijuana sales enacted into law. “While some people want sports stadiums,” Senate President Pro Tempore Louis Lucas (D-VA) said in a social media post on Monday, “I want tolls to disappear from Hampton Roads *and* I want recreational sale of marijuana.” “Guess we will have to find compromises this session,” she said. The comment…