Category: Maryland
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In New York and Baltimore, Elected Officials Embroiled in Scandals Get Behind Drug Reform
New York has legalized cannabis for recreational use. It is a move that makes New York the fifteenth state to legalize and will contribute to undoing decades of racial disparities in cannabis arrests. The legalization law, passed by the Senate and signed into law by Governor Andrew Cuomo on Mar. 30, creates a regulated, commercial…
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Maryland Must Wait At Least Another Year For Legalization
Last week, on Mar. 18, cannabis legalization advocates showed up in Annapolis with a giant inflatable joint and a plain and simple message: Don’t allow the cannabis legalization bills proposed by the House and Senate to fail. The expiration date for both legalization bills—Senate Bill 708 and House Bill 32—was Mar. 22 and neither passed…
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Maryland Dispensary Robbery Illustrates Dangers of Cash-Only Cannabis
If you have been to a Maryland dispensary, you probably passed through at least three security checkpoints—a locked front door, a front desk check-in, and a locked door to the sales floor. Some dispensaries even hire full time security guards. This is because dispensaries are prone to robberies, not because of the cannabis—but the cash…
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Advocates Push For Cannabis Legalization in Annapolis With a 51-Foot Joint
A 51-foot long inflatable joint with the words “Maryland Pass The Joint!” and the logo of Maryland Marijuana Justice (MDMJ) stamped on the side of it appeared near Annapolis’ State House earlier today, Mar. 18, as part of a protest pushing the cannabis reform-averse legislators in Maryland towards passing a legalization bill. “Some legislators won’t…
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Majority of Maryland Republicans Support Cannabis Legalization, Goucher Poll Finds
Two-thirds of Marylanders support legalizing cannabis for adult-use—including a majority of Republicans—according to a recent Goucher College Poll. 66 percent of Maryland residents support legalizing cannabis for adult-use while 29 percent are in opposition. Support for cannabis legalization among Maryland residents has grown since 2019 when the Goucher Poll found 57 percent of residents supported…
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A Tale of Two Bills: Md. Lawmakers Continue to Discuss Specifics of Cannabis Legalization
Maryland legislators continue to deliberate on the merits of two largely similar cannabis legalization bills—one in the House, one in the Senate—which differentiate in ways that will determine how accessible the adult-use cannabis industry is to those most harshly impacted by racist prohibition of cannabis. SB 708, sponsored by Sen. Brian J. Feldman and other…
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Quick Hit: Final Rule For Domestic Hemp Production Published
Back in January, the United State Department Of Agriculture (USDA) published its final rule on establishing its Domestic Hemp Production Program, as enabled in the 2018 Farm Bill. The rule allows both individual states and Indigenous tribes to begin domestically producing hemp and explains the requirements for record-keeping regarding hemp production, testing, plant disposal, hemp…
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Baltimore Nurse Destigmatizes Medical Cannabis in Schools With Children’s Books “Asa’s Medicine”
In her new book Asa’s Medicine, Baltimore nurse Ashley Wynn-Grimes, R.N. teaches children and their parents about why some students are administered medical cannabis in school following the passage of H.B. 617 by the Maryland General Assembly in 2020. H.B. 617, “Conner and Raina’s Law” went into law without the governor’s signature last year permitting…
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Quick Hit: ‘Crestone,’ a Documentary About Soundcloud Rappers and Weed Growers in Colorado
Last week, Baltimore filmmaker Marnie Ellen Hertzler’s documentary Crestone was made available for streaming. The quasi-documentary made the virtual festival rounds last year and gathered a great deal of deserving buzz and quite a few understandable, “holy shit” responses as well. It tells the story of a group of twentysomethings with a whole lot of…
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Website Launch Causes Massive Delays for Maryland’s Medical Cannabis Patients & Physicians
Last Tuesday, Feb. 16, the Maryland Medical Cannabis Commission (MMCC) migrated their website to Maryland’s statewide licensing portal, One Stop, causing technical interruptions which prevented many medical cannabis patients from purchasing their medication. When dispensaries opened Tuesday morning, the website they typically use to check a patient’s identification, photo, doctor’s information and most importantly—their monthly…
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Maryland Bill Requires Workers’ Comp to Cover Medical Cannabis Like Opioids
Maryland lawmakers are considering legislation that would allow worker’s compensation to cover the cost of medical cannabis in order to provide an alternative to prescription opioid use for pain resulting from a work-related injury. Because medical cannabis is not currently covered by worker’s compensation in Maryland, those struggling with work-related injuries are instead prescribed opioids…
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Legalization Must Accommodate the Illicit Cannabis Market, Advocates Say
The Maryland General Assembly is inevitably going to legalize cannabis possession and sales for adult-use, whether it be this year or next, and lawmakers will begin developing regulations for Maryland’s portion of a young, complicated and fragmented industry with an especially resilient illicit market. The pros to legalization—additional tax revenue, reducing the incarcerated population, preserving…