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Marijuana activists in Connecticut are asking the Department of Consumer Protection to offer whole cannabis buds in the state's medical marijuana program, rather than ground-up plants. Peter Mould of North Haven is executive director of Connecticut NORML, which advocates for reform of marijuana laws. He and others claim that homogenizing the plant, which the state requires, results in "the degradation of the cannabinoids, the actual essential oils that are in the flower," Mould said. Mould has posted a petition at change.org (search for "medical marijuana CT"), which states: "We request that you please change your regulations to allow producers to sell the bud-form to dispensaries, in order to enable patients to have their high-quality medicine." "The patient community is suffering because of this," Mould said.
Medical marijuana became available in Connecticut in September, although not all of the four growing facilities have product to distribute yet. It requires that the marijuana be tested by a lab and packaged like a traditional medicine. Patients can buy it through any of six dispensaries if they suffer from one of 11 conditions, including glaucoma, cancer and Crohn's disease. But Mould called the final product basically "ground-up dust" and said, "I completely understand why they're trying to do it, but it doesn't make sense with cannabis." He said he is registered to buy medical marijuana for back injuries. "I suffer from spasms every day of my life," he said.
"It was deplorable," Mould said of the medical marijuana. "I vaporize and it's deplorable." Colin Souney of Guilford, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, agreed with Mould that ground-up marijuana "deteriorates. It's just like the vegetable sitting in the grocery store," which loses its nutrients if chopped up. He said of the state-controlled product: "The effect is short, the feeling in your mouth is not pleasant and, unfortunately, if you consume it two or three days in a row it no longer has an effect," Souney said.
Another issue is price. Twenty dollars per gram, which is the price at Bluepoint Wellness of Connecticut in Branford, "is an outrageous price," Souney said. Nick Tamborrino, CEO of Bluepoint Wellness, declined to comment. Marghie Giuliano, executive vice president of the Connecticut Pharmacists Association, said it's too early in the program, with just one growing facility producing cannabis, to judge the effectiveness of the state's product.
"There's a gap in clinical evidence," Giuliano said. "The purpose of the medical marijuana program in Connecticut is really to make sure the product is safe." She said producers and dispensaries will cooperate in studies of the homogenized marijuana. Most of the 22 other states, plus the District of Columbia, that have approved medical marijuana allow residents to grow their own, in limited quantities. Michelle Seagull, deputy commissioner of the DCP, said the department decided to use a medical model for marijuana rather than just regulating the way marijuana has traditionally been grown and sold.
"We require that the marijuana in Connecticut be lab-tested and that it be listed with the active ingredients," she said. Seagull said buds can have different levels of cannabinoids, such as THC and CBD, "even within a single plant." Besides giving patients a consistent product, homogenization is necessary, Seagull said, because different levels of active ingredients are more effective on some conditions than on others. "I can't speak to whether it actually reduces potency and, if so, how much," Seagull said. "If you're a patient, there are going to be certain active ingredient levels you need," which will be listed on the label, she said. Seagull said the petition has not been presented to the DCP yet but there are no plans to change the medical marijuana program. "I believe the way we're doing it is the appropriate medical model," she said.
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Nhregister.com
Author: Ed Stannard
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Connecticut medical marijuana activists want whole flower, not ground-up plant
Medical marijuana became available in Connecticut in September, although not all of the four growing facilities have product to distribute yet. It requires that the marijuana be tested by a lab and packaged like a traditional medicine. Patients can buy it through any of six dispensaries if they suffer from one of 11 conditions, including glaucoma, cancer and Crohn's disease. But Mould called the final product basically "ground-up dust" and said, "I completely understand why they're trying to do it, but it doesn't make sense with cannabis." He said he is registered to buy medical marijuana for back injuries. "I suffer from spasms every day of my life," he said.
"It was deplorable," Mould said of the medical marijuana. "I vaporize and it's deplorable." Colin Souney of Guilford, who suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder, agreed with Mould that ground-up marijuana "deteriorates. It's just like the vegetable sitting in the grocery store," which loses its nutrients if chopped up. He said of the state-controlled product: "The effect is short, the feeling in your mouth is not pleasant and, unfortunately, if you consume it two or three days in a row it no longer has an effect," Souney said.
Another issue is price. Twenty dollars per gram, which is the price at Bluepoint Wellness of Connecticut in Branford, "is an outrageous price," Souney said. Nick Tamborrino, CEO of Bluepoint Wellness, declined to comment. Marghie Giuliano, executive vice president of the Connecticut Pharmacists Association, said it's too early in the program, with just one growing facility producing cannabis, to judge the effectiveness of the state's product.
"There's a gap in clinical evidence," Giuliano said. "The purpose of the medical marijuana program in Connecticut is really to make sure the product is safe." She said producers and dispensaries will cooperate in studies of the homogenized marijuana. Most of the 22 other states, plus the District of Columbia, that have approved medical marijuana allow residents to grow their own, in limited quantities. Michelle Seagull, deputy commissioner of the DCP, said the department decided to use a medical model for marijuana rather than just regulating the way marijuana has traditionally been grown and sold.
"We require that the marijuana in Connecticut be lab-tested and that it be listed with the active ingredients," she said. Seagull said buds can have different levels of cannabinoids, such as THC and CBD, "even within a single plant." Besides giving patients a consistent product, homogenization is necessary, Seagull said, because different levels of active ingredients are more effective on some conditions than on others. "I can't speak to whether it actually reduces potency and, if so, how much," Seagull said. "If you're a patient, there are going to be certain active ingredient levels you need," which will be listed on the label, she said. Seagull said the petition has not been presented to the DCP yet but there are no plans to change the medical marijuana program. "I believe the way we're doing it is the appropriate medical model," she said.
News Moderator - The General @ 420 MAGAZINE ®
Source: Nhregister.com
Author: Ed Stannard
Contact: Contact Us
Website: Connecticut medical marijuana activists want whole flower, not ground-up plant
