Cannabis & Marijuana news

Coverage of medical marijuana and cannabis news, insights, lifestyle, laws, growing guides and more!

Year: 2013

National Association of Specialty Pharmacists Investigating How To Manage Medical Marijuana

The National Association of Specialty Pharmacists (NASP) is in the process of creating a task force in order to investigate how they and other healthcare professionals can help assist the management of marijuana for their patients who use the plant for medicinal dedications. “Essentially, patients receive treatment from dispensaries, outside of their pharmaceutical [regimen] management, and we believe that a drug with such a broad scope should be managed effectively through the specialty pharmacist to ensure patient education and proper dispensing,” Gary Cohen, CEO of the National Association of Specialty Pharmacy explained. The NASP intends to …

Washington: Seattle City Council Approves Marijuana Zoning Measure

Seattle’s City Council has officially voted on the limits as to where recreational marijuana-related businesses can setup shop. Last Monday, the council members sanctioned a zoning measure for marijuana processing facilities, cultivation operations and retail outlets. The measure in question also restricts indoor marijuana farming grow spaces to 20,000 square …

Study: Cannabinoids May Be Beneficial Treament For Parkinson’s Disease

According to a study that was published online by the National Institute of Health, certain marijuana-derived compounds (mainly THC) could be effective treatments for Parkinson’s disease due to the fact that they are neuroprotective. The study’s researchers, from the Plymouth University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, examined cell-culture…

Arkansas: Attorney General Authorizes Medical Marijuana Initiative

Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel has sanctioned the language of a proposed medical marijuana initiative for next year’s ballot that would legalize the plant for medicinal dedications. Last Thursday, McDaniel qualified said proposal which was submitted by the pro-marijuana legalization organization Arkansans for Compassionate Care. McDaniel’s blessing clears the way for the group to begin gathering the 62,507 signatures that are required in order for the proposed initiated act to be placed…

Oklahoma: Majority Of Voters Endorse Marijuana Law Reform

Oklahoma, City, OK: A majority of likely Oklahoma voters back legalizing the use of medical marijuana and also support de-penalizing pot possession penalties for recreational users, according to survey data released by SoonerPoll.com and commissioned by the Oklahoma state affiliate of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). Seventy-one percent of respondents said that they support amending state law to allow for physician-authorized…

NORML Advances to Round 2 of Super Bowl Ad Contest

Thanks to NORML members and supporters who pushed NORML’s proposed Super Bowl ad in an ongoing Intuit ad contest to the number one position. This morning, Intuit informed us that we have advanced to Round 2 of the contest. Entries who are deemed finalists from this round will be informed on October 29th. We can put marijuana legalization before the masses at this year’s Super Bowl…

NORML Match Grant: Extended Two Days To Lament Marijuana Prohibition’s Founding

Dear NORML members and supporters, Over the last month $26,650 has been raised by NORML members and supporters in a $100,000 donor match put forward by new NORML board members Rick Steves and Justin Hartfield. Thank you to the hundreds of donors who’ve contributed thus far—and employing football season jargon, I’m employing a national director ‘audible‘ to extend the match grant two…

Everything is Bigger in Texas Including Support for Marijuana Legalization

They say things are bigger in Texas and, according to new survey data just released by Public Policy Polling, that includes support for marijuana law reform. PPP’s polling found that 58{2b4a1a3f3bbc9c5a43771f34362679a3afcf9df24c0d9f4fe2fa80a69d802033} of Texans support regulating marijuana like alcohol and only 38{2b4a1a3f3bbc9c5a43771f34362679a3afcf9df24c0d9f4fe2fa80a69d802033} were opposed. This change in policy was supported by 59{2b4a1a3f3bbc9c5a43771f34362679a3afcf9df24c0d9f4fe2fa80a69d802033} of women, 70{2b4a1a3f3bbc9c5a43771f34362679a3afcf9df24c0d9f4fe2fa80a69d802033} of Democrats, 57{2b4a1a3f3bbc9c5a43771f34362679a3afcf9df24c0d9f4fe2fa80a69d802033} of Independents, a majority of all racial demographics, and a majority of all age demographics. The survey also reported that 58{2b4a1a3f3bbc9c5a43771f34362679a3afcf9df24c0d9f4fe2fa80a69d802033} of Texans supported…

International Marijuana Laws: Three Takes In Three Countries

Three countries, one week and three different public policy views about cannabis laws: Switzerland — After years of debate, and with a number of cantons having already done so, the entire nation of Switzerland began a cannabis possession decriminalization policy for adults. This is not unlike similar penalties in fifteen states in America and likely a prelude to eventual legalization in the infamously ‘neutral’ country (certainly more than most countries as the Swiss …

FusionPharm Expands Production and Sales Facility

DENVER, Colo. — FusionPharm, Inc, FSPM, the Denver based manufacturer of the PharmPods™ cultivation system today announced that it has secured a new manufacturing and sales center facility in the Denver area.  The new facility, which will house executive offices, a sales center complete with demo containers and approximately 6,000 square feet of manufacturing, will allow the company to grow with it’s ever expanding marketplace. 

Medical Marijuana Inc.’s HempMedsPX Leading the Industry With Hemp-Based Cannabidiol (CBD) Products

SAN DIEGO, Calif.— Medical Marijuana Inc. (OTC Pink:MJNA) is pleased to inform shareholders and the general public that HempMedsPX—a corporate portfolio company of Medical Marijuana Inc. and the exclusive master distributor and contracted marketing company for CannaVest Corp. and Medical Marijuana Inc.— entered the “High CBD (cannabidiol) Award”-winning product at the High Times Medical Cannabis Cup in Seattle, Washington. Submitted by HempMedsPX on behalf of PhytoSPHERE Systems, the prototype product

Top 50 Most Influential Marijuana Users Named By the Nation’s Largest Marijuana Policy Organization

WASHINGTON, D.C. — A list of the “Top 50 Most Influential Marijuana Users” in the United States was released Wednesday by the nation’s largest marijuana policy organization.

WA, CO Governors Seek Bank Access for Marijuana Industry

The governors of both Washington and Colorado sent a letter yesterday to federal bank regulators asking for “inter-agency guidance” that would give state-licensed marijuana businesses access to banks.

Washington State Board Adopts Rules For Marijuana Industry

It’s official. The state of Washington has formally adopted new rules for recreational marijuana — how and where it can be grown, sold and distributed. The state Liquor Control Board predicts a 30-day licensing window for growers and sellers to open on Nov. 18.

ASA Executive Director to be Honored at International Drug Policy Reform Conference

 Steph Sherer, Founder and Executive Director of Americans for Safe Access will be awarded the Robert C. Randall Award for achievement in the field of Citizen Action, October 26, at the International Drug Policy Reform Conference in Denver.  The Robert C. Randall Award  honors citizens who make a democracy work in the difficult area of drug law and policy reform.   “I’m truly grateful to be receiving the Robert C. Randall Award,”said ASA Executive Director Steph Sherer. “I started ASA in 2002 as a campaign response to Asa Hutchinson and now ASA …

DOJ Abandons Some But Not All Medical Marijuana Forfeiture Cases in California

In an unexpected but laudable move, the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California announced last week that it was dropping pending  forfeiture lawsuits against several landlords of medical marijuana dispensaries. For months, the Obama Administration, and U.S. Attorney André Birotte Jr. in particular, had pursued the property of numerous landlords in southern California. Software engineer Tony Jalali of Anaheim was…

Update on SocalPure Raid

Below is an update from SoCal Pure a legal, state sanctioned medical cannabis collective raided last week in San Diego County. On October 9, SocalPURE was raided. Keep in mind that this was a legal medical marijuana collective operating under the law of the State of California. At approximately 9:40 …

Urgent: POW Jerry Duval is Going Blind from Neglect

Medical Cannabis patient Jerry Duval is serving a 10-year sentence for cultivating cannabis under Michigan’s medical cannabis laws. While we all know 10 years is a ridiculous sentence for a medical cannabis patient, unnecessarily losing his eyesight because of neglect is inhumane. When Jerry was a young boy he was diagnosed with juvenile diabetes. This later forced him to undergo…

Arizona Judge Prevents Local Governments from Banning Dispensaries; If Only Californians Were As Fortunate

An Arizona judge overturned a Maricopa County ordinance Monday, claiming that local governments cannot adopt a prohibition on medical marijuana dispensaries as an “attempt to prevent implementation of the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act.” In his ruling, Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Michael Gordon held that a county “may not …

“The Clear” By Clear Concentrates

“The Clear” is a line of high purity concentrates extracted using a “solvent-free” method developed by the scientists at Clear Concentrates. Though it was once only available to patients at Harborside Health Center in Oakland, CA, this “solvent-free” concentrate is now accessible at a number of Southern California dispensaries including Varieties For Life and Aardvarks in LA. We spoke to a representative – we’ll call him Lens for the sake of anonymity – from Clear Concentrates who explained to us that their concentrate is solvent-…