Re : Federal Regulation of Marijuana for Recreational Use

Statement of Issue : As of June 2021, eighteen states have fully legalized the sale and use of cannabis. An additional twenty-six states have mixed laws pertaining to cannabis with partially restricted sales regulations. This poses several issues to both health and legal legislation as there is no unified regulation of cannabis. Some states require a patient registry with medical ID cards while other states allow for recreational sales. Meanwhile, some states still classify marijuana as a fully illegal substance. This disjointed regulation presents with confusion as marijuana can be viewed as a recreational product, medical remedy, or criminalized drug. As cannabis is a psychoactive substance, its accessibility should also be handled with care so that its consequences does not range from recreation to incarceration.

• Marijuana remains a Schedule I substance at the federal level, indicating that it has a high potential for dependency and no accepted medical use.

• Cannabis presents a health risk to young adult population. Studies show that cannabis use in the ages of 16 – 18 years old has a strong association with poor attention span, executive function, and reduced verbal intelligence with neurologic structural changes.

• Cannabis shows efficacy in reducing pain in geriatric populations and patients who undergo transplant surgeries. Patients were observed to experience a reduction in neuropathic pain and prescription opioid drug use. 
• Sales of legal marijuana  increases tax revenue, jobs, and small businesses. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates an 110% increase of jobs in the marijuana industry in the next ten years. In Colorado, sales of legalized marijuana generated $362,021,103 tax revenue in 2020. This was approximately $100,000,000 more than in the year 2019. 

• Legalization of marijuana reduces crime rates. 545,602 individuals were arrested in 2019 for cannabis-related crimes. These crimes were more often due to possession rather than violent acts. There was also a disproportionate number of arrests in lower socioeconomic communities with a larger black and brown population. Legalization of marijuana would reduce racially-targeted arrest and make better use of taxpayer money towards more violent and dangerous crimes. 

Policy Options

1. A federal mandate where marijuana may only be obtained with a medical license card through a rigorous screening process. This would include a complete physical exam, mental status exam, and thorough past medical and social history. Patients must prove to have a health-related issue such as post-surgery, Alzheimer’s, cancer, or seizures for cannabis use. Additionally, dispensaries are only approved for the sale of medical marijuana. 

Advantages

• Protects the youth and those with addictive tendencies from misuse and abuse 
• Limits the risks of health risks associated with marijuana use such as metabolic syndrome, acute myocardial infarction, and coronary artery disease in patients with cardiovascular disease
• Continues to offer marijuana for medicinal use for those with chronic diseases associated with pain

Disadvantages

• Relies on physician compliance. Past examples show that physicians have easily bypassed this system for financial gains
• Dispensaries lose business
• Government experiences loss in tax revenue
• Illegal sources of marijuana continues to appeal to young adults

2. National legalization and regulation of marijuana for recreational use accompanied by public health education. In the Netherlands, marijuana is legalized for sale to adults in limited quantities. The city also implements strong education and public health measures by offering free drug testing, syringe exchange program, and methadone treatment. In doing so, individuals are offered better protection and services by the government in the event of drug misuse. Data also shows that with lenient policies and strong public health measures deters young adults from using recreational drugs as the appeal is lost. Statistics show that young adults in the Netherlands are less likely to have ever smoked marijuana compared to those in the United States.

Advantages

• Reduces likelihood of individuals obtaining marijuana from an illegal source
• Increased regulation decreases availability of synthetic or tainted marijuana products
• Stimulates economic gains through dispensaries
• Creates jobs
• Raises tax revenues for government
• Releases individuals who are incarcerated in states with stricter marijuana laws 

Disadvantages

• Relies on compliance by public
• Poses risks to pregnant and young adult population if misused 
• Complex legal terrain for those already incarcerated for the sale and use of marijuana
• Increases federal spending on regulation infrastructure and public health measures

3. National legalization of recreational sale of marijuana with limitations on the quantity and type of marijuana sold to each individual. For example, the state of Connecticut legalized the retail sale of cannabis by licensed establishments in 2021. However, individuals may not gift purchased cannabis products. Possession is also limited to adults over the age of 21 and to 1.5 ounces of cannabis.

Advantages

• Minimizes misuse and abuse of cannabis products
• Continues to promote small businesses and dispensaries 
• Generates jobs
• Protects individuals who present with health risks (ex. Young population, pregnant women)
• Reduces likelihood of marijuana-related crimes

Disadvantages

• Expensive process to develop database to track sales of each individual
• Limits economic momentum of marijuana businesses

Policy Recommendation : As the legalization of marijuana grows among the United States, reform is needed for a uniform and standardized policy to ensure safety of use by the general public. From the start, there was emphasis to limit the use of marijuana for medicinal use only. However, this policy presented with conflict as physician and patients easily bypassed screening regulations for personal gains. Stricter screening procedures may curb this problem, but does not provide effective measures unless implemented with strong law enforcement and legal consequences. It also did not solve the issue of the illegal distribution of marijuana. Alternatively, the government may consider to fully legalize marijuana for recreational use by the public. Public health measures may offer some buffer to ensure that cannabis products are used responsibly. As there are substantial studies to show the health risks to pregnant women and young adults, a stricter policy should be considered to better protect the public. This leaves the best option of having recreational marijuana legalized at a federal level, but with strong limitations on the quantity and types of products sold. This policy would work similarly to that of the restrictions placed on alcohol. In doing so, individuals at higher risks are better protected. The limitation of sales also reduces the likelihood of misuse and abuse as cannabis is still a psychoactive substance. 

References 

Governor Lamont Signs Bill Legalizing and Safely Regulating Adult-Use Cannabis. CT.gov. https://portal.ct.gov/office-of-the-governor/news/press-releases/2021/06-2021/governor-lamont-signs-bill-legalizing-and-safely-regulating-adult-use-cannabis. Accessed July 17, 2021. 

Map of Marijuana Legality by State. DISA Global Solutions. https://disa.com/map-of-marijuana-legality-by-state. Published June 14, 2021. Accessed July 17, 2021. 

Marijuana Legalization and Regulation. Drug Policy Alliance. https://drugpolicy.org/issues/marijuana-legalization-and-regulation. Accessed July 17, 2021. 

Marijuana Tax Revenue in States that Regulate Marijuana for Adult Use. Marijuana Policy Project. https://www.mpp.org/issues/legalization/marijuana-tax-revenue-states-regulate-marijuana-adult-use/. Accessed July 17, 2021. 

Pacula RL, Smart R. Medical Marijuana and Marijuana Legalization. Annual review of clinical psychology. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6358421/. Published May 8, 2017. Accessed July 17, 2021. 

Page RL, Allen LA. Medical Marijuana, Recreational Cannabis, and Cardiovascular Health: A Scientific Statement From the American Heart Association. https://www.ahajournals.org/doi/10.1161/CIR.0000000000000883. Published August 5, 2020. Accessed July 17, 2021.

Zha C. High Economy: Impacts of Marijuana Legalization on the US Economy. The Economics Review. https://theeconreview.com/2020/12/18/high-economy-impacts-of-marijuana-legalization-on-the-us-economy/. Published June 8, 2021. Accessed July 17, 2021.