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Cuomo administration report backs marijuana legalization in New York
The new Health Department report says that cannabis legalization comes with the potential for substantial tax revenue
Forbes (US)
Friday, July 13, 2018
The administration of New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) released a state Health Department report that says the "positive effects" of legalization "outweigh the potential negative impacts." "Numerous NYS agencies and subject matter experts in the fields of public health, mental health, substance use, public safety, transportation, and economics worked in developing this assessment," the 75-page document says. "No insurmountable obstacles to regulation of marijuana were raised." The report estimates that legal marijuana sales could generate between $248.1 million and $677.7 million in revenues for the state in the first year, depending on tax and usage rates. (See also: Cuomo moves closer to marijuana legalization in New York) -
Watchful eyes: At peer-run injection sites, drug users help each other stay safe
There's no paperwork here, there are fewer rules and, since it is run by peers, there's no judgment or stigma
NPR (US)
Friday, July 13, 2018
People who use injection drugs in Vancouver, British Columbia, can do so, if they choose, under the watchful eyes of someone trained to help them if they overdose. This is the idea behind supervised injection sites, and it's an approach that over a dozen U.S. cities or states are considering to prevent drug overdose deaths and the spread of disease. Public health authorities in Vancouver, Canada, have run a supervised drug use center, Insite, since 2003. And as the death toll reaches record levels — 1,422 people died of overdose in British Columbia in 2017 — new grassroots sites are popping up, run not by doctors and nurses, but by drug users themselves. -
Cities planning supervised drug injection sites fear Justice Department reaction
Harm reduction advocates hope supervised injection sites can follow the path of needle exchange programs which have gained wider acceptance over the years
NPR (US)
Thursday, July 12, 2018
In parts of the country hit hard by addiction, some public health officials are considering running sites where people can use heroin and other illegal drugs under medical supervision. Advocates say supervised injection sites save lives that would otherwise be lost to overdoses and provide a bridge to treatment. There are at least 13 efforts underway in U.S. cities and states to start an official supervised injection site. But many safe injection site proposals seem to be waylaid in community debate and legal uncertainty. Officials with the Justice Department offer a statement issued late last year by a U.S. attorney in Vermont saying health workers at a supervised injection site would be vulnerable to criminal charges and the property could be at risk of being seized by federal law enforcement. -
Poppy husk smuggling up in Barmer, but no excise case registered in 10 years
As the retail outlets for selling doda closed down on March 31, 2016, licenced addicts suddenly found themselves without
The Hindustan Times (India)
Thursday, July 12, 2018
Smuggling of doda post (lanced poppy husk) is on the rise in Barmer district after government supply of the narcotic was banned from April 2016, but the excise department has registered no case in 10 years though police have seized 11,000 kg of the substance from smugglers in two years since the ban, officials said. Doda is the leftover husk of an opium plant once the milk has been extracted. Before the ban, husk was supplied to around 260 outlets, issued permits by the Rajasthan excise department. About 19,000 licence-holders were eligible to get a limited quantity of doda from the licensed outlets. A reality check at the ground reveals that the ban is only on paper as thousands are still using the drug. The banned drug is available in rural areas, though at three times the earlier price. -
Hemp cultivation is now 'legal' in Uttarakhand
"When we started working on industrial hemp, we tried to figure out why India is not tapping on this $1-trillion industry"
Business Line (India)
Tuesday, July 10, 2018
Uttarakhand will be the first State in India to allow commercial cultivation of hemp crop, a rich source of high-quality fibre and a host of medicinal and nutritive products. The State government, earlier this month, granted licence to the Indian Industrial Hemp Association (IIHA), a non-profit organisation that promotes industrial application of hemp, to grow the fibre over 1,000 hectares, on a pilot basis. Even though the policy to allow cultivation of non-narcotic cannabis was formulated in 1985 along with opium, hemp cultivation failed to take off in India as proper procedures were not laid down for its cultivation, procurement and use, unlike that in the case of legal opium. -
Government won't 'stand in the way' of drug testing at festivals, says Home Office
'Clarity from the Government is a win, but we can go even further. Let’s make it a requirement that festivals and, if possible, nightclubs, have to ensure there is drug safety testing available'
The Independent (UK)
Monday, July 9, 2018
The Home Office “would not stand in the way” of drug testing at clubs and festivals, it said. It follows calls from experts and campaigners for music events to provide the service after two people died and 13 others were hospitalised at Hampshire's Mutiny festival. Eleven people have died at festivals in the last two years even though drug use is not increasing, suggesting that illegal substances now have higher levels of toxicity. Currently, drug testing facilities are offered at an extremely limited number of nightclubs and festivals by The Loop, a charity and the sole provider of such services. Policing minister Nick Hurd said the Home Office was not standing in the way of what he called "local operating decisions". -
CARICOM report says legalize marijuana use
Legal policy toward marijuana should be informed, not by punitive approaches, but by public health rationales, within a human rights, social justice and developmental perspective
The Nassau Guardian (Bermuda)
Monday, July 9, 2018
The CARICOM Regional Commission on Marijuana has recommended the declassification of marijuana as a dangerous drug in all legislation and the reclassification of the drug as a controlled substance in its report presented at the CARICOM heads of government meeting. The commission presented its findings and recommendations into the social, economic, health and legal issues surrounding marijuana use in the Caribbean. “The commission believes that the end goal for CARICOM should be the dismantling of prohibition in its totality, to be replaced by a strictly regulated framework akin to that for alcohol and tobacco, which are harmful substances that are not criminalized,” the report said. -
Toronto’s chief medical officer calls for decriminalization of all drugs for personal use
The report comes as cities across Canada rush to implement harm-reduction strategies to curb the spiking death toll from the opioid crisis
The Globe and Mail (Canada)
Monday, July 9, 2018
Toronto’s chief medical officer is calling for the decriminalization – and potential legalization – of all drugs for personal use as a way to curb rising opioid-related deaths and overdoses. In a report released on Monday, Medical Officer of Health Eileen de Villa recommended the federal government scale up harm-prevention strategies, including the removal of legal penalties for small amounts of drugs, and convene a task force to look at the possibility of regulating all drugs, such as alcohol. Dr. de Villa made those recommendations to the Toronto Board of Health, asking it to put pressure on the provincial and federal governments. -
A plan to jump start Lebanon's economy: Export cannabis to the world
'The quality we have is one of the best in the world,' said Lebanon's trade minister, adding cannabis could become a one-billion-dollar industry
Haaretz (Israel)
Sunday, July 8, 2018
Consulting firm McKinsey & Co. presented a document detailing proposals to jump start Lebanon's economy to President Michel Aoun, Bloomberg reported. The report highlighted some "quick wins" Lebanon can implement to get back on track - including legalizing cannabis production for export. Caretaker Economy and Trade Minister Raed Khoury added Lebanon could legalize cultivation and export the drug for medicinal treatments: “The quality we have is one of the best in the world,” he said, adding cannabis could become a one-billion-dollar industry. Bloomberg notes that "cannabis is cultivated clandestinely in the eastern Bekaa Valley, which is dominated by Hezbollah." (See also: Lebanon will legalize growing marijuana after McKinsey evaluated it as a boost for the country's troubled economy) -
Caricom Commission: Marijuana laws too draconian
Current laws are inequitable and discriminatory
The Guardian (T&T)
Sunday, July 8, 2018
The Caricom Regional Commission on Marijuana has labelled existing regional marijuana laws as draconian and one which carries with it inappropriate criminal penalties. Indicating its unanimous position for law reform across the region, Commission Chair Prof Rose-Marie Belle Antoine said “the penalties were premised on the notion that marijuana or cannabis has no value." Although there was a suggestion to remove prohibition generally, she said the Commission was clear when it came to children and young persons. Unable to say how soon the recommendations may be rolled out across the region, Belle Antoine said the Caricom responses appeared to be in favour of law reform. (See also: CARICOM heads agree to examine marijuana classification)
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