Can Medical Marijuana Help End the Opioid Epidemic?

Pot for pain is picking up speed. Should it?

Even Republicans are in Favor of Marijuana Legalization

The idea that prohibition has failed is finally starting to catch on for many who have been fighting legalization since the beginning. For the first time in U.S. history, the Republican party is in favor of legalizing marijuana, according to a poll by YouGov – which shows that 45% of Republicans favor legalizing, and 42% are still opposed. While it is a very small margin, it is still one that has room and time to grow.

Loss of DNC Chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz Is a Boost for Cannabis Legalization

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Democratic National Committee Chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz has come under intense fire in recent days over internal emails released by WikiLeaks that appear to show the party favoring Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign over that of Sen. Bernie Sanders. Wasserman Schultz will no longer have a major speaking role at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia this week, and some veteran Dems are now calling for her resignation for the sake of party unity. As one top Democrat told CNN, “She’s been quarantined.”

Marijuana May Treat ALS and Improve Survival Rate

Thanks to the Ice Bucket Challenge, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (or ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, as it is more commonly known) has gained media and public popularity all over the world. ALS is a fatal, progressive neurodegenerative condition that occurs as a result of selective loss of motor neurons in the brain stem, motor cortex and spinal cord. ALS strikes all of a sudden, commonly between the ages of 40 and 70. Approximately, 5,600 people are being diagnosed per year. The exact cause of ALS is still unknown, but it is believed to be due to neurotoxicity, inflammation and oxidative stress in the motor neurons. These events impair the brain’s ability to initiate or control muscle movements.

Fed Study Finds Medical Marijuana Laws Calm Cannabis Fears

A new study published by a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services reveals a strong correlation between whether a state has legalized medical marijuana and how concerned residents are about health risks.

Medical Marijuana States See Big Drop in Drug Prescriptions and Medicare Spending

Recent findings may show that medical marijuana not only saves state and federal governments millions on Medicare, but it may help curb prescription drug use too. A new study reports that in states where medical marijuana is available prescriptions for painkillers has dipped drastically.

A Salute to Woody Harrelson, Long-Time Cannabis Advocate: VIDEO

Woody Harrelson's cinematic career is an embroidered tapestry of vivid insights into the human condition, exuberant and debaucherous humor, and gems of unadulterated genius. For those unfamiliar with Mr. Harrelson’s luminous work, find him at his best in Natural Born Killers, Kingpin, Wag the Dog, The Thin Red Line, A Scanner Darkly, No Country for Old Men, Zombieland, and Seven Psychopaths, to name a few. Off the big screen, Mr. Harrelson has played an array of diverse television characters, with outstanding roles in Cheers, Saturday Night Live, Frasier, The Simpsons, and True Detective.

Cannabis as a Treatment for Overactive Bladder and Incontinence

Urinary incontinence is more than just an inconvenience, as the sufferer has to go to the bathroom over and over again due to constant and sudden urges, irrespective of time and place. Unfortunately, these symptoms always accompany social embarrassment and mental anxiety and one has to bear it until the bladder symptoms are completely treated.

What Can't Medical Marijuana Do?

Recent studies indicate that the drug is making seniors healthier and helping stem the tide of the opioid epidemic—all while making their health care cheaper.

Things aren’t going so hot in the public-health war against the opioid epidemic that is sweeping America right now. Deaths from opioid overdoses hit an all-time high in 2014, the latest year for which there’s official data, and there isn’t much reason to believe the epidemic will be over any time soon. New legislation provides for a range of policy options for addressing the epidemic, but all will likely be woefully underfunded. States hit the hardest by the crisis are passing their own legislation to combat it, but the different elements of health-care regulation, criminal law, and public-health law that are involved make the scope of the problem difficult to deal with. All the while, groups like elderly Americans are becoming increasingly vulnerable to opioid addiction.

GOP CHOOSES NOT TO SUPPORT THE LEGALIZATION OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

The Big Story

As you’re probably already aware, this week the GOP had their Republican National Convention in Cleveland, Ohio. Along with naming the party’s presidential candidate (it’s officially Trump if you somehow haven’t heard the news yet), Republican delegates and leaders also took time to figure out just what will make it onto the Republican platform and what won’t. Medical marijuana didn’t make the cut. And while that may not be the most surprising news ever, wait until you see some of the reasons GOP delegates gave for why they didn’t want to support the legalization of medical marijuana.

First medical marijuana available next week in Florida

In this June 28, 2016 photo, Surterra Therapeutics Cultivation Manager Wes Conner walks through one of the rooms within the company’s 6,000-square-foot facility on the outskirts of Tallahassee, where marijuana plants are in their initial stages of growth. Joe Rondone AP/Tallahassee Democrat

Two years after state lawmakers and Gov. Rick Scott approved it, Florida’s first medical cannabis dispensary is scheduled to open next week.

What happens to medical marijuana if recreational use becomes legal? VIDEO

Alexandra Rice sits on the porch of her Grand Terrace home. Rice uses marijuana to battle lupus and depression. She's against Proposition 64 to legalize recreational marijuana because she's worried it will consume the medical market with people who just want to get high. (KURT MILLER, STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER) (KURT MILLER)

As she battles symptoms of lupus and depression, Alexandra Rice says she depends on easy access to medical marijuana to control widespread pain and to improve her mood.

Reefer Madness! Medical Marijuana Is Already Saving $165M Per Year For Medicare

Poster for the 1936 film Marihuana. Image now in the public domain

This news will give anti-marijuana crusaders fits.

Medical Marijuana Could Save Medicare $470 Million Annually, Study Shows

Image source: Getty Images

This could potentially be a groundbreaking year for the marijuana industry.

In November, residents in up to a dozen states could be voting on whether or not to legalize recreational or medical marijuana. This comes after Pennsylvania and Ohio passed laws legalizing medical marijuana in their legislatures this spring. As it stands now, half of the country has legalized the use of medical marijuana, and four states (plus Washington, D.C.) allow for the sale of recreational marijuana to adults ages 21 and up.

Study: Why pharma companies are fighting medical pot

High Level, a medical marijuana shop on Colfax Ave in Denver

There’s a body of research showing that painkiller abuse and overdose are lower in states with medical marijuana laws. But that’s always been just an assumption.

Medical marijuana industry spreading its roots in region

David Noble, president of In Good Health, in the medical marijuana company’s grow facility in Brockton

The rollout of the 2013 state law legalizing the sale of medical marijuana has proceeded at a snail’s pace in Massachusetts, with just six dispensaries in operation.

A Guide to Cannabis Allergies and Symptoms

A Growing Need for Information About Cannabis Allergies

Nobody likes allergies, right? In fact, everyone I know absolutely despises them. According to the American College of Asthma, Allergy, and Immunology, more than 50 million Americans suffer from allergies each year. Cumulatively, that’s a huge number of people who will experience some sort of allergic reaction at a point in their life, whether it be to a particular variety of food, pollen, mold, or perhaps a more specific irritant such as cats.

Medical Marijuana Gets Its Day In The Senate

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The Senate will hold a hearing about the medical benefits and risks of marijuana Wednesday, in a move to better understand a substance that has picked up increasing support nationally.

Dems Move Party Platform a Little Closer to Legalization

The Democratic Party heard the call of its constituents and took an unexpected step in support of cannabis reform last weekend, officially endorsing a “reasoned pathway to future legalization." The party also recommended cannabis be rescheduled under the Controlled Substances Act.

With recreational and medical marijuana on the rise, feds re-evaluating how to treat the drug

A medical marijuana user smells a jar of marijuana at the medical marijuana farmers market at the California Heritage Market in Los Angeles, California July 11, 2014. (David McNew / Reuters)

When President Richard Nixon signed the Controlled Substances Act in 1970, the federal government put marijuana in the category of the nation's most dangerous drugs, along with LSD, heroin and mescaline.

Residents in These 8 States Are Set to Vote on Marijuana This November

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This is going to be a transformative year for the United States. Not only are we set to vote in a new president for the first time in eight years this November, but we could also see the most rapid expansion of marijuana ever, with eight states now set to vote on recreational or medical cannabis initiatives or amendments this fall.

Cannabis catalyst: Medical marijuana could boost business in Florida

Rosie Yagielo runs a marijuana business at the southern edge of a state where medical pot is not available.

Your Grandma Needs To Be Smoking Pot: VIDEO

It's going to be pretty hard to keep weed illegal when your grandparents are smoking it to prevent Alzheimer's.

Study: Medical Marijuana Laws Cut Drug Spending: VIDEO

Co-owner Matt Lawson-Baker looks at a row of plants at Alternative Solutions, a DC area medical marijuana producer, April 20, 2016 in Washington, DC. (BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/GETTY IMAGES)

Proponents of legalizing medical marijuana can add another argument to their cause: The laws appear to save taxpayers millions of dollars.

One Size Doesn’t Fit All: BioTrackTHC on the Future of Cannabis Tracking

Cannabis legalization has hit its tipping point as more states are approving medical marijuana across the country. This resurgence of the once-prohibited plant is coming at a time when technology is lightyears ahead of any other prior agricultural product coming to market. At this booming time in technology, BioTrack THC is leading the way in developing systems designed for marijuana inventory and sales, as marijuana is held to a higher standard than other agricultural product or supplement.

In Photos: An Italian Photographer's Powerful Images Help Patients Share Their Stories

Lucia Spiri, 34 years old, Racale. Spiri was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2000. She began treatment with heavy doses of drugs like interferons, muscle relaxants, and antidepressants, but one of the drugs left her with permanent tremors and confined to a wheelchair. Spiri now relies on cannabis flower imported from the Netherlands. Photo by Maria Novella De Luca

After being hit by a car in 2006, Christian Ferri still suffers enduring physical and psychological consequences. Traditional medicine resulted in inflammation of his muscles. So, looking for something that worked without causing him additional problems, the 29-year-old Italian turned to cannabis and homeopathic therapies. The results were inspiring. In 2014, Ferri climbed central Italy's highest mountain, crediting cannabis-infused milk as his core power source. “To climb the Gran Sasso nine years [after the accident] has been the greatest emotion of my life,” he said.

The DEA Can't Legalize Medical Marijuana: New at Reason

Alessandro Di Ciommo/ZUMA Press/Newscom

Rumor has it that the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) plans to legalize marijuana any day now. Rumor also has it that Barack Obama is secretly a foreign-born Muslim and that the CIA had a hand in the attack that brought down the World Trade Center. Unfortunately, that first claim is about as likely to be true as the other two, Jacob Sullum explains.

THC Can Remove the Toxic Plaques That Cause Alzheimer’s, Study Finds

The discovery was made with lab-grown human neurons that mimic the effects of Alzheimer’s.

The Democratic Party’s Cannabis Position Stinks. Here’s How We’d Change It

The Democratic Party released its official pre-convention platform this afternoon, giving all of us policy wonks stuck in our offices prior to the July 4 weekend something to read and grumble about.

Cannabis Can Treat Herpes Virus Infection

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is a common viral infection that anyone can acquire sexually from an infected person. The disease mostly affects the skin and soft mucous membranes of the genitals. The risk of viral transmission is also likely if someone touches an infected person’s rashes, sores or blisters. In most cases, herpes patients remain symptom-free but notoriously infectious to others.

Congress Strips Amendment Allowing Veteran Access to Medical Marijuana

A bill that would have allowed veterans access to much needed medical marijuana has been completely stripped from the spending bill that would govern the VA during 2017. Originally, things were looking up for the Veterans Equal Access Amendment, which was added onto the House Conference Report of the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs (MilCon-VA) and Related Agencies Appropriations Act of 2017.

These ADHD Researchers are Reading Your Posts for Insights on Medical Cannabis

Researchers at Duke University took to online forums last month to learn more about how ADHD patients are self-medicating with cannabis, pushing over the first domino in what might become a series of novel scientific discoveries.

Judge orders Illinois to authorize medical marijuana for PTSD: VIDEO

Jim Mone / Associated Press

A Cook County judge ruled Tuesday that the state must add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of conditions that qualify for medical marijuana.

Child patients will soon gain access to out-of-state medical marijuana: VIDEO

Parents and guardians of children with epilepsy and other medical conditions will be able to obtain a “safe harbor” letter next month allowing them to obtain medical marijuana from outside Pennsylvania. (AP file photo)

Parents and guardians of children with epilepsy and other medical conditions will be able to obtain a "safe harbor" letter next month allowing them to obtain medical marijuana from outside Pennsylvania.

Veterans Journal: PTSD added to conditions treatable with medical marijuana

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The Rhode Island General Assembly voted on June 16 to approve legislation introduced by Sen. Stephen Archambault, D-Johnston, and Rep. Scott Slater, D-Providence, that would add post-traumatic stress disorder to the list of conditions that may be treated with medical marijuana. At the time this story was written, the measure is on Governor Raimondo’s desk for her consideration and signature or veto.

Leonard Marshall: A Giant in the World of Medicinal Marijuana

Gregg DeGuire/Getty Images

A cornerstone of the 1980s Giants, the former defensive lineman is getting into the business of cannabidiol and advocating for medicinal marijuana

While active NFL players are not allowed to use marijuana as a form of medical treatment, former players are free to treat their aches and pains with the plant where it’s legal, and more and more are beginning to do so. Two-time Pro Bowler Leonard Marshall recently joined the campaign for medical marijuana use for pain management among athletes. Marshall, a former defensive end who spent 10 of his 12 seasons with the Giants, uses a hemp oil product derived from the marijuana plant to treat symptoms he believes is related to head trauma suffered during his playing career. But he’s not in it for the high. The hemp oil is a Cannabidiol (CBD) which doesn’t contain the second main ingredient in marijuana, THC, the component that floats you off to your happy place.

This Vaporizer Brings Coffee-Pod Technology To Medical Marijuana: VIDEO

A rush to develop new tech for the regulated pot industry reveals a device that borrows from existing kitchen appliances

Discouraged by the side of effects of medicines prescribed for his anxiety, Michael Borque found a medicinal haven in a more natural remedy: marijuana. Given that his home state of Massachusetts had yet to sell the drug medicinally, the 40-year-old went about acquiring his first ever buds the traditional way. One parking lot deal and rolled joint later, Borque realized that he liked the high, but hated the burning sensation he felt in his throat and lungs that followed a smoke. Fast forward two years and Borque is now the CEO of Stoneham-based CannaKorp, maker of the CannaCloud vaporizer.

Chronic marijuana use is about as bad for your health as not flossing, researchers find

If you must light up, remember to floss. (G M/Flickr)

Long-term marijuana use is not associated with a raft of physical health problems, according to a new study, with one surprising exception: gum disease.

Introducing the Medical Marijuana Research Act of 2016

“It’s a Catch-22 that the research is difficult because of the strict rules, and the rules are strict because of the lack of research.”

Bills aims to remove medical marijuana barriers

U.S. Rep. Morgan Griffith, R-Va.

A bill designed to help the medical research community by removing barrier inhibiting studies is being introduced by several congressmen including one from Virginia.

Marijuana’s biggest adversary on Capitol Hill is sponsoring a bill to research … marijuana

Hundreds of advocates for marijuana legalization rallied and smoked pot outside the White House in April. (Photo by Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post)
Rep. Andy Harris (R-Md.) is Congress's most vocal opponent of legal marijuana, having single-handedly spearheaded a provision blocking legal pot shops in the District of Columbia in 2014. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), on the other hand, was recently named Congress's "top legal pot advocate" by Rolling Stone.

What a change in DEA's pot rules might mean for medical research

Most doctors approach medical marijuana with a great deal of uncertainty because drug laws have hindered researchers' ability to figure out what pot can and can't do for sick patients.

That could soon change.

This 20-Year Marijuana Study Could Blaze a Trail That Supporters Have Been Waiting For

Image Source: PIXABAY

The marijuana industry is blossoming, and 2016 could wind up being its best year yet in a number of ways.

Why Pharmacists Believe They're The Most Qualified To Dispense Medical Marijuana

Canada's medical marijuana industry has recently become a battleground between the nation's "gray market" dispensaries - illegal storefronts selling marijuana in cities like Vancouver and Toronto - and licensed producers such as Tilray and OrganiGram, who sell cannabis to patients through Health Canada's mail-order system.

Say Hello to the 25th and Newest State to Legalize Medical Marijuana

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Following a resounding marijuana initiative defeat last November, this state seemingly defied the odds to become the 25th to legalize medical marijuana.

25 states now call marijuana “medicine.” Why doesn’t the DEA?

Charles Schatz of Bel Air, Maryland holds a sign demanding the use of marijuana for medical cases as he joins dozens of protestors for the legalization of marijuana in front of the White House, April 2, 2016, in Washington, DC. Mike Theiler/AFP

John Kasich signed Ohio's medical marijuana bill into law yesterday, making it the 25th state (26 counting Washington, D.C.) to allow some form of medical marijuana use.

When Medical Marijuana Is Difficult To Access, 'Street Pharmacists' Are Some Patients' Only Hope: VIDEO

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As I wandered down Nostrand Avenue looking for the right building, he stood in the middle of the busy sidewalk, raised his left hand high, and waved in my direction.

Medical marijuana now legal in 24 states after Pennsylvania Gov. approves measure

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Pennsylvania just became the 24th U.S. state to legalize medical marijuana.

Cannabis chewing gum may help MS sufferers

Biotech company AXIM Biotechnologies has launched clinical trials for medical cannabis chewing gum that they hope will successfully treat conditions such as multiple sclerosis, irritable bowel disease and Crohn’s Disease.

Can Crowdfunding Help Establish the Benefits of Medical Marijuana?

PHOTO BY PIOTR LOOP

Cannabis has been used for centuries for medicinal purposes by various civilizations. Despite this fact, the U.S. Federal Government has classified it at the highest level, making scientific research extremely difficult to perform. Currently the public’s view on cannabis is changing and now over 30 states allow some type of cannabis based products for medical use. While this is certainly a step in the right direction, for cannabis to be truly considered a medicinal drug, guidelines for its use must be established. When doctors prescribe drugs to help improve our health they always tell you when and how much of it should be used to alleviate your symptoms. Currently the bulk of medical professionals are unable to give any such guidelines when they sign off on medical marijuana cards. Determining how and what cannabis based products medical professionals recommend to patients are of critical importance to legitimizing medical marijuana. This point was prominently made during a recent government meeting sponsored by several institutes from the National Institutes of Health, Marijuana and Cannabinoids: A Neuroscience Research Summit, that convened in late March.