The minimum age for the sale and purchase of cannabis should be set at 18. Unlike previous plans, there will be no THC content levels by age group. Due to the increased risk of cannabis-related brain damage in adolescence, the document specifies that a maximum THC limit for adults up to 21 will be considered.

Synthetic cannabinoids will not be permitted.

“Smoking, inhaling, nasal and oral dosage forms in the form of capsules, sprays and drops are permitted,” the document states. “An extension to edible products (products other than food which are offered for oral consumption) will be examined at the latest within the framework of the evaluation of the law” i.e. before 4 years. Here we find a market structure in two phases, as in Canada where concentrates and edibles were authorized 2 years after legalization.

On September 26, the Ministry of Health should have given the deputies an evaluation report on the experimentation with medical cannabis.

On this date, we learned that the ministry had in its hands three reports produced externally but preferred to consolidate the “elements recently received” then bring them “to the attention of Parliament within the framework of the debates on the PLFSS 2023” in mid -october.

If the reports made “externally” were done in due time, the ministry in any case preferred to anticipate its communication and conclude directly with an extension of the experiment. However, the various reports support the success of the experiment and the expectation of generalization by the patients included in the experiment, for themselves and for others.

Some statistics from the report

The first report, produced by the company IQVIA, is 163 pages long and studies experimentation in detail: speed, typology, circuit and quantity of prescriptions, age and location of patients treated, satisfaction of doctors and pharmacists, etc.

One of IQVIA’s report on French experimentation with medical cannabis

This report begins by recalling the objectives of the French experimentation with therapeutic cannabis:

• assess the feasibility of the medical cannabis supply circuit at all stages of the care pathway: patient inclusion, cannabis delivery and patient follow-up
• collect the first data on the effectiveness of the use of cannabis in a medical setting.

This report insists on this last point: “It is important to remember that this study is not an evaluation of the effectiveness cannabis for medical use” even if it has necessarily been measured.

As of March 31, 2022, a total of 1450 patients have been included in the experiment. 69% of them are still included, ie a total of 1036 patients. 28% of patients have been discharged, and the remaining 3% are about to enter.

Within the 1450 patients included and left the experiment, more than half of them are included for the indication “neuropathic pain refractory to accessible therapies” (51%). The second most frequent indication is “painful spasticity of multiple sclerosis” (15%) followed by the indication “certain drug-resistant forms of epilepsy” (13%). The least represented indication is “painful spasticity from other pathologies of the central nervous system” (4%).

Of the 1450 patients, 414 (28%) left the experiment, including 38% for adverse effects, 37% for ineffective treatment and 15% for death.

Regarding the first results on efficacy, encouraging results have been obtained for certain indications and no worsening has been observed. Significant improvements have been demonstrated in particular for patients with neuropathic pain or for patients with painful spasticity from multiple sclerosis, with an improvement in spasticity and a reduction in the number of spasms.

Results are also positive for the “oncology” and “palliative situations” indications. For example, for patients included and discharged in the “oncology” indication, the results indicate a perceived improvement (slight, significant and very significant) for 52% of patients, including 19% showing significant and very significant improvement after 3 months follow-up. The results are more mixed for the indication “painful spasticity of other pathologies of the central nervous system”.

Conclusion of the IQVIA report

The first report concludes with a positive note on the main objective of the experiment:

“The results from the register data and the qualitative information obtained through interviews with the actors in the field made it possible to validate the feasibility of the circuit for the provision of medical cannabis for the majority of the stages”.

The shortcomings are based on the prescription circuit in town, that is to say the prescription by a general practitioner then distribution in pharmacies rather than by a specialist doctor and a pharmacy located within a hospital establishment, which has been very little developed.

“In view of these conclusions, the evaluation carried out here makes it possible to meet the main objective of the experiment, namely that the circuit for making medical cannabis available to French patients is feasible and operational under the conditions defined and put in place. in place in practice. »

Concerning the effectiveness of medical cannabis, which is not the objective of the experiment, the report concludes that the follow-up is too short and a modest number of patients, while recalling that the experiment was not modeled for report efficacy data.

The ANSM did not identify, in a second report on pharmacovigilance, any significant sensitive point in the dispensation of medical cannabis.

What do patients say about the experiment?

1630 patients included in the experiment were questioned by the company ViaVoice and 725 responded. Their feedback was recorded in a third report “Pathways and perception of patients”.

68% of respondents perceived beneficial effects, including 32% who perceived “a lot” of them, in terms of their state of health but also related to their quality of life.

Patients report clear satisfaction with their medical care since their inclusion in the experiment: an average score of 8.2 out of 10 and 51% of respondents giving a score of 9 or 10.

Verbatims of patients included in the experiment

In line with the previous results, the respondents questioned during the qualitative phase – 13 telephone interviews – are mainly positioned in favor of the generalization of medical cannabis, whether the treatment has worked for them or not, according to a principle of “recommendation”. “if it can help people who are suffering”.

Those for whom the treatment is seen as effective are all the more in favor of the generalization of medical cannabis, and this in a very clear-cut way, since this treatment has become essential to their daily lives.

In the event of a cessation of experimentation, if patients could no longer have access to medical cannabis treatment, some would consider consuming cannabis illegally.

The feedback finally notes that “medical cannabis constitutes for some patients a treatment which they can no longer do without, for which there is no alternative, with a certain concern vis-à-vis the continuation of experimentation”.

Why does the ministry want to extend?

From these reports made externally, the Ministry of Health draws a final report of 13 pages. Let’s jump to conclusions right away:

• A positive experiment which tends to confirm the feasibility of the cannabis prescription and dispensing circuit for patients (main objective of the experiment)
• Missing data that the National Health Data System (SNDS) could not provide “due to an extremely busy work program on many other ministerial priorities”
• A lack of participation of general practitioners
• A number of enrolled patients less than the 3,000 imagined (editor’s note: which was not an objective to be achieved)
• The absence of work on the definition of a status for the products used during the experimentation and on their terms of coverage in the event of generalization (editor’s note: discussion that started in 2018)

If we wanted to focus on showing the good faith of the Ministry of Health, we would look at the amendment that the presidential majority is presenting to extend the amendment. However, it lacks a commitment from the government to want to legalize medical cannabis on a large scale at the end of the possible postponement.

Several sources, who all wish to remain anonymous, also tell us that the Ministry of Health would not make it a priority to make medical cannabis available to French patients and inform us of various blockages within the General Management. of Health.

Questioned several times, the DGS “come back[t] towards [n]We will soon have an answer”.

The ministry also suddenly forgets to specify that it recently invoked the need to build a French sector and the risk of positions being taken by foreign players on the market who today have a good back in providing medical cannabis free of charge. What would happen if they refused to continue providing free medical cannabis to 3,000 “active file” patients as requested by the ministry?

And finally, why not generalize today and give all the keys to success to current and future French companies wishing to supply cannabis-based medicines to patients?

A question that we had asked Santé Cannabis France, which was also campaigning for an extension of the experiment, and which did not wish to have its answer appear in our columns. However, she told us recently that she had “constantly mobilized[e] alongside patient associations, to ask the French authorities to speed up the definition of the regulatory framework”.

Finally, let us understand that the Ministry of Health wants to give time to time, even if it means leaving sick people in a therapeutic impasse without a solution or, for some, supplying themselves on the black market.

If France were really looking for data on the efficacy (or inefficacy) of medical cannabis to give itself good reasons to legalize medical cannabis, it is likely that it could turn to other countries which already produce or prescribe on a massive scale. medical cannabis: Israel, Canada, Australia, Germany, the Netherlands or 33 states in the United States.

The government of Dominica has announced that it is in the process of introducing a law that will allow the creation of its cannabis industry by next year.

Speaking on public radio, Dominica’s Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit told listeners that his administration would table the relevant legislation in parliament before the end of the year.

Currently, cannabis is already decriminalized in Dominica, up to 28 grams of cannabis for one person and 3 plants per household for self-cultivation.

“We announced in this year’s budget to provide permits and licenses for people who are in the production of cannabis oils, creams and lotions, and soaps because we recognize that there is a certain number of Dominican citizens who suffer from cancer and who use cannabis oil to give them some relief. »

“So we are in the process of setting up the mechanism and the certification, which also involves providing certificates to growers and farmers so that they can plant and grow this plant,” Skerrit said.

He said that earlier this year, with the support of the Canadian government, Dominica received assistance in drafting the necessary legislation to treat cannabis as a medical industry for export…”.

He also said there were a number of processes to follow and Canadians “through a project are helping us with that,” adding that a national committee chaired by Attorney General Levi Peter is looking at the legislation as well as “the various treaties that we have to sign”.

“So we’re making great strides, and I think next year we’ll definitely be able to pass this legislation and have a full-fledged cannabis industry in Dominica, so we can take advantage of the many opportunities to cannabis,” Skerrit said.

Several Caribbean countries, notably Jamaica, Barbados or Saint Kitts and Nevis, have undertaken to establish similar industries.

In addition to the extension of experimentation with therapeutic cannabis, the amendment of which was adopted in committee, the National Assembly could legalize cannabis.

An amendment tabled by the Green MP Julien Bayou proposes to create an excise tax for cannabis and its products like that of tobacco.

“Thus the amendment aims to regain control of cannabis and cannabis products by creating an excise duty, in the same way as alcohol and tobacco, and to direct these funds towards prevention and awareness policies” summarizes its summary .

The taxes collected would be allocated “to the “sickness, maternity, invalidity and death” branch of the general scheme and [permettraient] thus creating an additional resource for the benefit of the compulsory basic social security schemes”.

If the text is insufficient to regulate the production and sale of cannabis, it would “technically” legalize cannabis. Then task the government with putting in place a regulatory framework.

The amendment is signed by the members of the EELV group in the National Assembly.

As we had already noted, the Social Affairs Committee had ruled inadmissible an amendment carried by the same group and proposing the legalization of cannabis, under article 40 of the Constitution which prohibits any creation or aggravation of a charge public resource and authorizes the reduction of a public resource only insofar as it is compensated by the increase of another resource.

Is this new amendment likely to pass? If it could be of interest beyond the ranks of EELV, the use of “49.3” could elude its precise examination of Le Parisien, which initially flushed out Julien Bayou’s amendment.

Floridians will be able to fill up with gasoline and Diesel at the same time.

Green Thumb Industries (GTI), one of the largest multi-state operators in the United States, has signed an agreement with Circle K – one of the world’s largest convenience store chains – to lease space and d to open medical cannabis dispensaries attached to Circle K stores in Florida.

GTI plans a rollout of 10 stores in 2023 to test the model.

GTI, which also owns the Rise Dispensaries chain, will name its Florida stores Rise Express. Rise Express stores will sell cannabis flower, pre-rolls, vape cartridges and edibles.

Circle K, owned by the Canadian group Couche-Tard, has more than 600 stores in Florida.

“The opening of Rise Express stores in Circle K stores is a game changer. Convenience is a strong channel in retail, and people want greater access to cannabis,” Ben Kovler, founder and CEO of GTI, said in a statement.

Produce to be sold in Rise Express stores will come from GTI’s 10-hectare Florida grow site in Ocala, which is expected to be operational by the end of 2022.

According to the state health department, Florida has more than 700,000 medical cannabis cardholders.

The Couche-Tard group announced in 2017 that it wanted to start selling cannabis. In 2019, she announced that she had made a strategic investment in the company Fire & Flower. The opening of two branches in Alberta, again alongside Circle K convenience stores, resulted from the partnership.

More recently, last September, the latter two continued their joint growth by opening a cannabis retail branch, Spark Perks, in Brampton, Ontario, also adjacent to a Circle K gas station.

In 2021, Couche-Tard also joined forces with Canopy Growth to bring Tweed businesses to Ontario and sell Whisl CBD vape cartridges at Circle K’s 3,000 U.S. locations.

The health commission of the Assembly of Polynesia must meet very soon to examine the project of legalization of medical cannabis in Polynesia

The bill, which you can view here, provides for an overhaul of the 1978 regulations on “the import, export, purchase, sale, possession and use of poisonous substances”.

Currently, the principle is that of a general ban on all use of cannabis or its derivatives with fenua, the only derogation being for research

“Revision of the regulations is necessary”puts in the preamble the explanatory memorandum to the text, which quotes in particular the “advances in medical research” or the recognition of “therapeutic potential of cannabis” by the United Nations Commission on Narcotic Drugs in December 2020.

The text therefore provides for changes to the current regulations in order to be able to “authorize the therapeutic use of cannabis in the form of a drug which must comply with the regulations relating to drugs in force in French Polynesia”but also “authorize the agricultural production of cannabis and hemp for industrial purposes, in particular pharmaceutical, under strict control and within the framework of regulations in accordance with the single international convention on narcotic drugs of 1961”.

Legally, the principle remains that of a “general prohibition of any operation relating to cannabis”but with exceptions provided for by law and subject to an authorization regime for therapeutic cannabis and hemp, in the same way as in mainland France.

For hemp, defined as a plant with less than 0.3% THC, cultivation in Polynesia will be “authorized” and intended for any non-medical product containing no more than 0.3% THC (food products from seeds and wellness products). The text already provides for being able to change the THC level of plants in the field, up to 1% THC.

The cultivation of cannabis with more than 0.3% THC will be exclusively reserved for “manufacture of drugs in accordance with local regulations and massage products for therapeutic use” and the export of medical cannabis.

Local patient associations have been calling for the regulation of therapeutic cannabis in Polynesia for many years. In a video posted on Facebook, Philippe Cathelain, from the Polynesian Hemp Syndicate and Karl Anihia, president of the Tahiti Herb Culture (THC) association, share their satisfaction for this first regulatory step.

“It’s a great satisfaction, it’s the culmination of a project that we’ve been asking for for 2 years already, when we started discussing with the Ministry of Health. But above all it responds to an urgent need of a part of our population wishing to access cannabis-based medicines for various pathologies. »

Following the decision of the parties of theampel in the coalition agreement to legalize cannabis, Germany must now build its regulation. The German press has received an exclusive outline of the cannabis legalization project, which is currently being discussed between the various ministries of the federal government.

According to the essential points of the cannabis legalization project, which is expected to be published this semester, the possession of 20 grams of cannabis with a maximum THC level of 15% will no longer be punishable. In order to avoid “cerebral lesions due to cannabis”, only products with a THC content not exceeding 10% may be sold to young people aged 18 to 21. The possession limit of 20 grams of cannabis will apply regardless of the origin of the product and its THC content.

If young people under the age of 18 are caught using cannabis, decriminalization would also apply. Youth services can force young people to take part in prevention courses and the cannabis carried will be confiscated.

Personal cultivation of two cannabis plants would be allowed.

Prohibition of advertising despite the legalization of cannabis

The location of cannabis stores should be regulated. Minimum distances should be set from schools and institutions for children and young people. Without a corresponding license, cannabis trade will remain punishable. The sale of synthetic cannabinoids will also be prohibited.

Despite legalization, it will remain prohibited to advertise cannabis products.

“Recreational cannabis is sold in overpacks (plain packaging) without advertising design”, is it still stipulated. “Advertising inducements to purchase” through points of sale or on the Internet are prohibited.

Pharmacies should also be able to sell cannabis

As far as point of sale is concerned, it is envisaged to authorize the sale not only in authorized stores, but also in pharmacies. Thus, the black market could be better combated due to the wider offer, especially in rural areas.

“On the other hand, the crowding out of the black market would probably be stronger if recreational cannabis could also be purchased online, which is gaining strongly in importance”, continues the text. It would also be considered to authorize “specialty stores offering the possibility of consumption”.

Regarding taxation, sales of cannabis products will automatically be subject to turnover tax. In addition, there should be a “cannabis tax”.

“A tax calculation based on the THC content seems appropriate,” it is suggested. This would achieve a “pronounced incentive effect”. With regard to the amount of the tax, it is only said that the highest possible tariff must lead, including turnover tax, to a final consumer price “which approximates the price of the black market “.

The reference document further states that cannabis needs must be covered by cultivation in Germany, as the import is not possible for reasons of European and international law.

“According to a provisional estimate, an international trade in cannabis for recreational purposes is not possible on the basis of or in accordance with the international framework conditions”, analyzes the document. And to continue: “According to this provisional assessment, national demand should be covered by German production”.

In collaboration with the snack brand TSUMo Snacks, Snoop Dogg launches Snazzle Os, chips in the shape of ringsonion flavored and cannabis infused.

Snazzle Os come in two flavors, Onion and Spicy Onion, with 100mg of THC per bag – a decent dose (and the maximum allowed by California law) worthy of the hip-hop icon.

The Snazzle Os will be available first at MedMen stores and then throughout California.

“I’m thrilled to partner with TSUMo Snacks to bring new snack options to my fans,” said Snoop Dogg. “There are a lot of sweet edibles out there, so when I created this product I wanted to put the Dogg twist on it, which is why I’m bringing these THC-infused Onion Flavored Crispy Rings to my state. native, California. You know if I have to put my name on something, it’s guaranteed stamped Snoop DO-Double-G. »

Snazzle OS Spicy Onion

Caroline Yeh, co-founder and CEO of TSUMo Snacks, has high hopes for this collaboration.

“There are a lot of reasons why this partnership is natural,” Yeh told High Times. “First, there’s Snoop and there’s cannabis. It is therefore a very natural partnership, and more particularly with TSUMo Snacks. Additionally, Snoop has already invested in and partnered with many food and snack brands. »

“He has his wrap snacks, and he pulls out his Snoop cereal,” Yeh added, referring to the Snoop Loopza (cannabis-free!) children’s cereal he launched with Master P. last August, with proceeds going to homeless people and families in need.

Yeh continued, “So he invested a lot in food. I think it’s a natural partnership to step back into the cannabis space with a snack brand like TSUMo. »

TSUMo Snacks and “Uncle Snoop” are also set to launch a line of limited-edition merchandise, complete with tracksuits, a gold chain, socks and other homages to California hip-hop culture.