Source: @norml @WeedConnection
Posted By: norml@weedconnection.com
media :: news - Tue, 13 Jan 2015 04:20:21 PST
Poll: Six Out Of Ten Virginians Back Depenalizing Marijuana
Richmond, VA: The majority of Virginians oppose criminalizing minor marijuana possession offenders, according to statewide polling survey data compiled by Public Policy Polling and commissioned by the Marijuana Policy Project.
Sixty percent of those surveyed responded favorably to the notion of amending state law so that the adult possession of up to one ounce of marijuana would be reduced from a criminal misdemeanor to a civil fine of no more than $100.00. Only 32 percent of those polled disagreed with depenalizing marijuana possession offenses.
Virginia police annually arrest some 19,000 individuals for marijuana possession offenses. Only 11 other states make more annual marijuana possession arrests.
Legislation (Senate Bill 686) prefiled in the state seeks to amend state law to reclassify cannabis possession as a non-criminal offense.
In response to separate polling questions, 74 percent of Virginians endorsed the idea of legalizing cannabis for medicinal purposes while just under half of all respondents (49 percent) voiced support for regulating the plant's production and sales to all adults.
Hawaii: Task Force Recommends Establishment Of Cannabis Dispensaries
Honolulu, HI: A state-sponsored task force is recommending that Hawaii lawmakers take steps to allow for the state licensed production and dispensing of medical cannabis to qualified patients.
According to news reports, the task force is set to recommend lawmakers begin granting applicants licenses to grow and dispense medical marijuana by January 1, 2017. The proposal calls for the establishment of at least one facility for every 500 authorized patients. Dispensaries are anticipated to be operational under the plan by July 1, 2017.
Legislation signed into law in 2000 allows qualified patients to possess and grow personal use quantities of cannabis, but does not provide for the retail production or dispensing of medical marijuana.
More information @ Drug Policy Forum of Hawaii @ https://www.dpfhi.org
Study: Pain Patients Report Cannabis Augments Efficacy Of Opiate-Based Medications
Sydney, Australia: Cannabis is often administered as an analgesic agent by chronic pain patients, many of whom report that it augments the pain-relieving properties of opiods, according to data published online ahead of print in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence.
An international team of investigators from Australia and England assessed the use of cannabis among a cohort of 1514 Australians who had been prescribed pharmaceutical opioids for chronic non-cancer pain.
Researchers reported that one in six (16 percent) of the patients surveyed acknowledged having used cannabis for pain relief. An additional 25 percent of respondents admitted that they would be willing to use cannabis for pain relief, but that they lacked access to the plant.
Among those using cannabis for pain, the average pain relief they reported they obtained from using cannabis adjunctively with their prescription medicines was 70 percent (where 100% meant complete pain relief). In contrast, the average reported pain relief they reported receiving from their prescription pain medications alone was only 50 percent.
"[The] findings here suggest that from a service user perspective, there is a significant sub-population of people living with CNCP (chronic non-cancer pain) who see cannabis as a helpful adjunct to pain relief," authors concluded. "Cannabis use for pain relief purposes appears common among people living with chronic non-cancer pain, and users report greater pain relief in combination with opioids than when opioids are used alone."
The Australian survey findings are similar to those reported in a 2011 clinical trial documenting that cannabis administration significantly augments the analgesic effects of opiates in patients with chronic pain.
Separate data published last year indicates that greater acceptance of cannabis as an analgesic agent may result in fewer opiate-related overdose deaths. Writing in JAMA Internal Medicine, investigators reported that the enactment of statewide medicinal marijuana laws is associated with year-to-year declines in opioid overdose mortality rates. Specifically, overdose deaths from opioids decreased by an average of 20 percent one year post-implementation, 25 percent by two years, and up to 33 percent by years five and six.
For more information, please contact Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director, at: paul@norml.org. Full text of the study, "Experience of adjunctive cannabis use for chronic non-cancer pain: Findings from the Pain and Opioids IN Treatment (POINT) study," appears online in Drug and Alcohol Dependence.
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