When prepared remarks by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions were posted online ahead of a speech by the AG in Richmond, Virginia, the speech contained a statement that Sessions did not include when he actually gave the speech:

And I am astonished to hear people suggest that we can solve our heroin crisis by legalizing marijuana — so people can trade one life-wrecking dependency for another that’s only slightly less awful.

That’s bad news for the nascent marijuana industry. But Sessions also had some less-bad news for the industry. Responding to a question following the speech, Sessions said:

The Cole Memorandum set up some policies under President Obama’s Department of Justice about how cases should be selected in those states and what would be appropriate for federal prosecution, much of which I think is valid.

The Cole Memorandum was issued in August of 2013 and outlined the Obama Justice Department’s enforcement policy in states where marijuana use is legal.

Sessions also indicated that the federal government doesn’t have the money to take over enforcement of federal anti-marijuana laws from state and local law enforcement agencies that have traditionally supplied the manpower.

While the message is mixed, the effect is clear: enforcing federal law related to marijuana is less important to President Donald Trump than spending $10 billion to start building a wall on U.S.-Mexico border. That puts marijuana in the same category as the National Endowment for the Arts and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Medical Marijuana Policies and Hospitalizations Related to Marijuana and Opioid Pain Reliever
(a paper published in the journal “Drug and Alcohol Dependence;” excerpt below from the abstract)

Results
Hospitalizations related to marijuana and OPR [opioid pain reliever] increased sharply by 300% on average in all states. Medical marijuana legalization was associated with 23% (p = 0.008) and 13% (p = 0.025) reductions in hospitalizations related to opioid dependence or abuse and OPR overdose, respectively; lagged effects were observed after policy implementation. The operation of medical marijuana dispensaries had no independent impacts on OPR-related hospitalizations. Medical marijuana policies had no associations with marijuana-related hospitalizations.

Conclusion
Medical marijuana policies were significantly associated with reduced OPR-related hospitalizations but had no associations with marijuana-related hospitalizations. Given the epidemic of problematic use of OPR, future investigation is needed to explore the causal pathways of these findings.

Read more at Drug and Alcohol Dependence.

Oregon Issues Another Marijuana Recall for Pesticides
Oregon Liquor Control Commission has issued another marijuana recall on Sunday for products from marijuana cultivated by Emerald Wave Estate, LLC. The product, marijuana flower, was transferred to Buds 4 U in Mapleton, Oregon and they then sold the product to 31 customers according to the OLCC tracking system.

The sales occurred between March 8 – March 10th, 2017. The strain was called “Blue Magoo” and can be identified by the unique id numbers on the label (see below). It was found contaminated with Pyrethrins above the allowable levels. The dispensary notified the OLCC when they noticed a positive pesticide result in the tracking system. They immediately removed the product from the shelf and issued a voluntary recall for the tainted product.

Read more at Oregon Cannabis Connection.

Marijuana Research: The Big Questions Researchers Want Answered
While marijuana is now becoming more legally accessible in the United States, there is still a lot that researchers don’t know about how this plant really works.

It was in the 1930s, during what was referred to as “Reefer Madness,” that marijuana was first banned. Just because marijuana is now more legally accessible, there is still a lot of research to be done in order to better understand the plant and exactly how it affects people.

Business Insider notes that all marijuana research has told society so far is that there are some legitimate medical uses and benefits. That and the fact that it is more than likely less harmful than opioids, alcohol, and even tobacco. Naturally, there is still a lot of research that needs to be done, as researchers have a pretty long list of marijuana-related questions.

The unfortunate truth is strict government regulations on marijuana make it extremely difficult for research to be conducted on the plant. This is one of the biggest reasons why researchers have so many questions about how the plant really works.

Read more at Inquisitr.

World’s First Marijuana Gym Is in (Where Else?) California
A San Francisco gym slated to open this fall will encourage clients to use cannabis as part of their fitness routine.

Power Plant Fitness clients will have the option to bring their own cannabis or order edibles, the gym’s preferred form of cannabis, while they are at the gym. A delivery service will bring desired edibles to the gym within 15 minutes after clients place orders, owner Jim McAlpine told USA TODAY. Adult-use, recreational marijuana is legal in California, but only dispensaries can sell it. Using marijuana in public is banned. The gym will have a designated space for those inhaling marijuana.

The gym, which advertises itself as the world’s first cannabis gym, touts using the drug for pain, focus and meditation.

Read more at USA Today.

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