In 1996, California became the first state in the US to medical marijuana. Numerous others have followed suit since the landmark legislation from The Golden State. Even historically deep-red states South Dakota and Alabama are reforming their cannabis laws. The tides are shifting, and now the largest market in the US has opened up cannabis use for adults. The New York cannabis reform bill is by far the most progressive legalization plan to date. We will go through what’s in the bill and how lawmakers learned from states like California are decades into their legal cannabis programs. Office of Cannabis Management
Governor Andrew Cuomo signed the Marijuana Regulation and Taxation Act (MRTA) on March 31, 2021, making New York the 17th state, including Washington DC and Gaum, to fully legalize cannabis for adults. A new government agency called the Office of Cannabis Management was created as an extension of the New York State Liquor Authority to regulate recreation, medical, and cannabinoid hemp. Medical Marijuana New York residents now have a larger range of medical conditions that could grant them a medical cannabis card. Home cultivation is also allowed for medical cannabis patients, and the number of caregivers allowed per patient was expanded. Recreational marijuana Recreational marijuana or ‘adult-use cannabis’ grants separate licenses to businesses wanting to grow or produce cannabis products and sell them at a retail location. The significant difference in the plan is giving economic opportunities to people who were most affected by cannabis prohibition or underrepresented in other states. New York is creating a social equity program with a goal of 50% of licenses going to ‘minority or woman-owned business enterprise, or distressed farmers or service-disabled veterans to encourage participation in the industry.’ Under the new legislation, NY residents can legally possess and transport up to three ounces of cannabis and up to 24 grams of concentrates. Licenses will be given to businesses operating cannabis consumption sites. The space would be free from alcoholic beverages but operate like lounges or clubs where patrons can consume cannabis indoors. One of the shortcomings in other states was not giving cannabis users legal places to use the newly legal products outside their homes, limiting cannabis tourism, and pushing consumption into public spaces. Cannabinoid Hemp The new legislation grants retailers selling CBD and other cannabinoid products, other than THC, the freedom to sell flower. NY legislators also took a stance on the latest cannabinoid to gain mainstream attention, Delta-8 THC, by banning the products altogether. Revenue Generated from New York Cannabis Reform Bill The new bill would tax cannabis products based on milligrams rather than weight, another change from the California model. The 13% tax will on all adult-use cannabis products are invested back into the community as follows: 40% on education 40% to the Community Grants Reinvestment Fund 20% to drug treatment and public education Criminal Justice Reform After decades of cannabis legalization in states like California, Colorado, Oregon, and Washington, we’ve witnessed some incredible results as well as various shortcomings. The most prominent being the licensing system. The cannabis industry disproportionately favors white men and excludes anyone with a criminal record. New York is opening up their licensing programs to people who have committed non-violent offenses and focusing on excluding people with a history of financial crimes. The aspect of the bill we are most excited about is the expungement or resentencing for previous marijuana-related offenses. People incarcerated because of cannabis will get their sentence reduced or thrown out, and people’s cannabis charges on their record will be wiped clean. The New York Cannabis Reform Bill – A Federal Model to Follow New York has taken this opportunity to boost the economy and correct past mistakes all in one progressive piece of legislation. If the US federally legalizes cannabis in the future, you can expect to see aspects of the New York cannabis reform bill in the legislation.
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Before the coronavirus outbreak, many states had not allowed marijuana telemedicine. Telemedicine is a visit between a health care provider and patient through telephone, smartphone, computer, or laptop, and usually involves the use of cameras. With the continuous spread of Covid 19, many people are forced to stay at home, and this has resulted in a high need for telemedicine for medical marijuana patients. Most legal cannabis states now allow medical marijuana telemedicine as an appointment alternative. Currently, we don’t know whether states that temporarily permit marijuana telemedicine will continue their work when emergency provisions/orders on medical marijuana telehealth come to an end in each state. During this period, many states have seen the essence of marijuana dispensaries which have enabled medical marijuana patients to obtain their medicine during the lockdown. The Benefits of Telemedicine Medical Marijuana Evaluations
The increase in the advancement of digital technologies has sparked innovations in different sectors and changed the way we interact and connect. In healthcare, digital technologies have created a revolutionary technological advancement—telemedicine. Although the notion of a virtual doctor’s appointment is not a new phenomenon, it’s only until recently that it's being put into practice. The ongoing covid-19 pandemic and the strict regulations implemented at the state and federal levels have made it difficult for individuals to visit their local physicians for appointments and evaluations. This has resulted in the use of telemedicine to help solve the problem while also providing several benefits in the process. This article focuses on the benefits of telemedicine for medical marijuana evaluations. Medical Evaluation with no stress Due to recurrent lockdowns, the best way to keep yourself safe is to stay at home and practice social distancing. Telemedicine evaluations make it easy for you to do just that. With telemedicine, a state-licensed medical marijuana practitioner will evaluate you from the comfort, convenience, and safety of your own home. Higher Patient Reach While there is a shortage of physicians in the country, the use of telemedicine services can help increase provider networks to make it easier for more individuals to gain access to healthcare. This also involves people willing to schedule appointments for medical marijuana evaluations. Greater Accessibility The process of telemedicine evaluations can’t be a burden for patients. After completing the simple registration and sign-up process for your favorite clinic, you can schedule a video-chat appointment with a licensed online physician. After approval, you’ll be qualified to receive your medical marijuana certificate and recommendations. Most telemedicine platforms are also mobile-friendly. Saves You Time Since telemedicine gives you access to a doctor instantly, it will save you the time spent traveling to a clinic. You save the time of going through lengthy commutes and waiting room and use that time to take care of yourself. Medical Marijuana Doctors Also Benefit from Telemedicine With Telemedicine, doctors can expand their number of consulting patients beyond physical offices and increase office hours. Doctors offering telemedicine as an alternative experience more social distancing and enough space to carry out tasks. Bottom line Studies show that patients who have utilized telemedicine aim to do it again. Telehealth offers doctors the chance to create new and more patient-friendly models for the delivery of care. Many US states have legalized the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes to treat many severe conditions such as nerve pain, nausea, and anxiety. Several studies show that medical cannabis can relieve pain, lessen inflammation, treat nausea, enhance appetite, control epileptic seizures, and more.
Chronic medical conditions can be difficult to treat and usually come with a lot of symptoms. Some people don’t find success in treating these chronic conditions with traditional medicines and are looking for better alternatives such as cannabis. But most people who want to use cannabis don’t know how to communicate it with their doctors due to the stigma surrounding the drug. While it may be a difficult process to talk to your medical practitioners about cannabis, it’s still a necessary conversation. In this article, we will provide some tips to help you communicate more with your doctor about medical cannabis. A dream is something that happens to all of us and while sometimes it can be enjoyable, it can also be disturbing. Dreaming is an essential aspect of our sleep routine that occurs when we enter what is called Rapid Eye Movement or REM sleep. Regularly experiencing REM sleep can improve learning abilities, improve memory, and enhance our moods. The lack of REM sleep can make us dreamless and lead to physical and emotional stress. So, can cannabis affect dreams? As people become more aware of the medical purposes of cannabis, scientists have begun to conduct studies on how it affects dreaming and sleep overall. The different stage of dreaming
Sleeping is part of our metabolism and it’s something every human does. We encounter four stages of sleep on an average night. The first stage is Non-Rapid Eye Movement (NREM) sleep. This is a less intensive sleep that occurs when you’re just beginning to drift off. It’s the period when you’re still alive but yet sleeping. This stage consists of about 5% of our total sleep time. The second stage is the longest and consists of about half of our sleep. This sleep is intense and usually characterized by slow breaths in which you become less aware of your surroundings. You start experiencing a drop in body temperature and a balanced heart rate. Stage 3 is the most intense sleep and you become completely unaware of your environment. You also find difficulties recovering from this stage of sleep. When you immediately wake from this stage, you become cognitively impaired and groggy for about an hour because your body hasn’t fully completed the normal sleep routine. The last stage is the fourth stage, and this is the stage where dreams happen. REM sleep usually lasts for about two hours each night. The dream is due to the increased neural activity that naturally occurs when we sleep. Cannabis and dreams Several studies conducted on cannabis and dreams show that THC can block REM sleep while increasing the duration of the other deep sleep stages. This means recurrent cannabis consumers will experience fewer or even zero dreams each day. While THC can make us have a comfortable sleep, it won’t necessarily make you dream in most circumstances. Interestingly, CBD acts differently than THC– consuming CBD will still send you to the REM sleep stage. Cannabis and dreams are linked in a way that can be beneficial for those who don’t like dreaming and less beneficial for those who like dreaming. Sufferers of PTSD will find cannabis useful as it eliminates REM sleep which can save them from recurrent nightmares that results from the condition. Cannabis improves their overall sleep for patients with sleep disorders. Bottom line While dreams can be a way of retaining memories, cope with different emotions, and enhance healthy functionality, they can still pose a threat to many since they can also come with nightmares. Therefore it will mostly depend on your sleep preferences on whether to use cannabis or not. IBD Inflammatory Bowel Disease is also known as IBD consist of a set of disorders of the digestive tract. This severe condition affects over 1.6 million Americans. Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) usually include Crohn’s disease (inflammation of digestive tract lining) and ulcerative colitis (inflammation and sores in the lining of the intestines or colon). The different types of IBD can lead to problems with digestion, absorption of nutrients from food or fruits, and difficulties in waste removal from the body. IBD can affect anyone, no matter the age or sex, but it’s most common in people between the ages of 15 and 45. The reason for IBD is still unknown but most researchers state that it results from the combination of genetic predisposition, immune dysfunction, and ecological factors. IBD’s main symptoms are diarrhea, abdominal pain, fever, and weight loss. It also comes with severe skin rashes, anemia, arthritis, nausea, vomiting, appetite loss, and fatigue. Although the symptoms of IBD can get worse over time, factors such as age, cigarette smoking, and genetics can make the condition more severe than usual. IBD has no cure which means those suffering from the condition will only receive medications to treat its symptoms. While the cure is not yet known, several studies on medical marijuana show that it can quickly relieve the symptoms of IBD. Medical marijuana may quickly treat symptoms of IBD such as chronic abdominal pain and may also lessen the inflammation that comes with the condition. How can cannabis help IBD?
Cannabis can enhance the health of IBD patients due to its high medicinal capacity. Cannabis offers potent anti-inflammatory and pain-relieving effects which can help IBD patients suffering from abdominal pain. But interestingly, the effects of cannabis on IBD patients are mostly due to Endocannabinoid System (ECS) and its interaction with the CB1 and CB2 receptors. The ECS controls several bodily functions such as mood, sleep, and appetite. Endocannabinoids are the body’s natural cannabinoids, and they play a role in stimulating the cannabinoid receptors in different parts of the body. When you consume cannabis, CBD and THC interact with our endocannabinoids to provide relief from pain and other conditions. According to survey data conducted in Canada and the US, it showed that about 20% of IBD sufferers preferred to use cannabis as the best way to their IBD symptoms, with most of them acknowledging having used cannabis before. Cannabis is currently a preferable alternative to pharmaceutical pills when it comes to IBD relief. Research on cannabis and IBD Cannabis research on IBD is slow are there are few studies to back its ability to relieve IBD symptoms. While the primary cannabinoids may lessen inflammation or pain, patients are still skeptical of using the drug for IBD due to lack of research and the inability to receive cannabis in the hospital. Bottom line While medical marijuana can help with the pain that comes with IBD, there’s a need for more research on its effect on other symptoms of IBD. Hopefully, there will be more studies in the future. Most individuals will agree that there is a need for extended research into the benefits of cannabis for different health conditions. All consumers of cannabis want it to become legal, but the federal government still doesn’t see the need for legalization because they are not yet convinced of its medicinal impacts. A 2017 report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine showed both the therapeutic and harmful effects of cannabis. The report also emphasized the need for further research on cannabis so that users can better understand the health effects of marijuana and the need for the removal of regulatory barriers which is currently blocking cannabis research. Marijuana has hundreds of compounds known as cannabinoids. The primary cannabinoid, cannabidiol (CBD) has potent antiemetic effects which can relieve nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy. According to ProjectCBD.org, CBD can lessen nausea by interacting with serotonin receptors, and that cannabis may be more effective in relieving nausea than conventional drugs. Preclinical studies show that the pure form of CBD known as CBDA has more antiemetic properties than CBD. When administered in relatively small doses, it can help relieve both nausea and vomiting. CBD also has anti-anxiety properties, which can aid patients with chronic nausea. Nonetheless, there is still a need for further research on this area to see if cannabis can benefit individuals suffering from the negative effects of chemotherapy.
Some preliminary studies on cannabis show its ability to stop the growth of cancer cells. Sadly, the lack of extensive studies as well as no clinical data proving the marijuana effects has made people less convinced. If deep research is conducted on cannabis and cancer, it could aid millions of cancer sufferers who often find difficulties with the condition. The current cannabis research on cannabis effects on heart health is both controversial and contradictory. Several reports show that cannabis can bring higher blood pressure, while others show that cannabis can act as a vasodilator, expanding the blood vessels and reducing blood pressure. Detailed research and clinical trials could clear the doubt surrounding cannabis and heart health. Pregnant women usually use cannabis to help alleviate nausea and vomiting also known as morning sickness. This condition affects some expecting mothers throughout the day, making them unable to maintain a healthy diet while pregnant and making life difficult for them. According to several critics, marijuana use while pregnant can adversely affect the growing fetus. Nonetheless, recent studies show that cannabis reduces only a four-ounce of birth weight in babies born to mothers who consume cannabis while pregnant. Another reason for the need for detailed studies on cannabis is because diabetics could potentially benefit from cannabis use too. Cannabis advocates believe that marijuana improves insulin generation, therefore blocking adult-onset diabetes. Some reports defy this by stating that cannabis use inhibits insulin production making people more liable to develop diabetes. Bottom line Cannabis has massive potential to treat varieties of symptoms. But due to federal restrictions on the drug, it becomes difficult to conduct studies. Surely, there is a lot of work to be done and as the drug gains more popularity, hopefully, we will see more cannabis research. Medical marijuana legalization has soared in the space of just two years, but cannabis use in hospitals is a segment on its own. The legalization of cannabis hasn’t influenced hospital drug policy in any way. Medical cannabis patients can’t still use cannabis in a hospital setting, even in legal medical marijuana states.
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AuthorOur doctors are world renowned for their careful treatment of patients across many sectors before entering the Mmj space. After years of seeing how Mmj helps people with many types of ailments, sicknesses and diseases, they wanted to ensure that the barrier to entry was as low as possible for folks needing a medical card. What that means for our patients is the most discreet, low-cost, immediate and professional delivery of your medical card available online today. Getting one online now is easy, see you there! Contact
Med Card Now PO BOX 12972 Bakersfield, California, 93309 United States Phone: 661-303-8459 Website: https://www.medcardnow.com FIND US ONLINE
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May 2022
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