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Cannabis Control Commission to Host Public Comment Period, Hybrid Hearing on Amendments to Microbusinesses, Delivery, Telehealth Regulations

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Starting September 16, the Massachusetts Cannabis Control Commission (Commission) will be soliciting feedback from stakeholders on the agency’s proposed regulatory changes to Microbusinesses, Delivery license types, telehealth options for patients, and prescribing allowances for providers. These draft changes were unanimously approved by the Commission at the July 19 Public Meeting and subsequently filed with the Secretary of State’s Regulations Division for publication on September 13.

Constituents will be able to provide written comment from September 16 to October 7, as well as oral testimony at a public hearing scheduled Monday, October 7 at the Commission’s headquarters at Union Station, 2 Washington Square in Worcester. Written submissions should be emailed to [email protected] with “Regulation Comment” in the subject line of the email no later than 5:00 p.m. EST on October 7, 2024.

The proposed regulatory changes include the highly anticipated change to allow delivery licensees the option of delivering marijuana and marijuana products to consumers with one Marijuana Establishment Registered Agent in a vehicle at a time, as opposed to the current requirement of two Agents, when delivering items with total retail value of up to $5,000. Two Agents would still be required to staff vehicles transporting products with a retail value exceeding $5,000 and up to the $10,000 delivery maximum. Under the change, Social Equity Program Participant and Certified Economic Empowerment Priority Applicant businesses with exclusive access to delivery licenses types also would be permitted to hold three Delivery Operator and three Delivery Courier licenses for the first time.

The draft changes also include a proposal to allow Microbusinesses to apply for other license types, such as Retail and Transport licenses; permitting Qualifying Medical Patients to opt-in to utilizing telehealth consultation with a Certifying Healthcare Provider for their initial certification; and giving Nurse Practitioners with independent practices authority to certify Qualifying Patients without a supervising Physician.

Any feedback to the draft regulations should be submitted to the Commission during the specified public comment period, and no later than October 7, 2024. All submissions should include the submitters’ full name, and organization or affiliation, if any. Those received by the deadline will be reviewed by the Commission and may be incorporated into the final version of regulations that will be considered at a forthcoming public meeting. Please be advised that the Commission may publish submissions it receives or produce them in response to a request made under the Massachusetts Public Records Law, M.G.L. c. 66, § 10, or any other compulsory legal processes.

A link to view the October 7 Public Hearing will be published at: https://masscannabiscontrol.com/calendar/. In advance of the public hearing, text of the proposed regulations may be viewed by visiting the “Regulations” section of the Commission’s public documents page at MassCannabisControl.com, requested by emailing [email protected], or by calling the Commission at (774) 415-0200.

 

Current Regulations

Please note: The Redlined versions include only those chapters with edits and changes in accordance with the Secretary of the Commonwealth’s filing requirements.



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Press Release: Health Canada releases new data on cannabis use in Canada – “18% of people who had used cannabis in the past 12 months reported driving after cannabis use, a significant decline from 27% in 2018.”

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The 2024 Canadian Cannabis Survey provides important insights into Canadians’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviours on cannabis use

December 6, 2024 | Ottawa, Ontario | Health Canada

An important part of the Government of Canada’s public health approach to legalizing and strictly regulating cannabis is ongoing and comprehensive surveillance, data collection and evidence gathering. The results from the annual Canadian Cannabis Survey provide a snapshot of public health and public safety data on cannabis in Canada.

Today, Health Canda published the 2024 Canadian Cannabis Survey (CCS) results. The data was collected from April 4th to July 2nd, 2024.

Since 2017, Health Canada has conducted the annual Canadian Cannabis Survey to better understand attitudes and knowledge regarding cannabis, as well as patterns of cannabis use in Canada. Through the information gathered, Health Canada can better understand where support is needed the most and develop program initiatives that will help educate and raise awareness around the use of cannabis.

Findings from the 2024 survey include:

  • The proportion of people in Canada who report smoking cannabis continues to decline. That said, smoking remains the most common method of consuming cannabis (69%), followed by eating (57%) and vaporizing with a vape pen or e-cigarette (37%).
  • The number of respondents who reported getting cannabis from a legal source in 2024 was 72% – an increase from 37% in 2019 to 72% in 2024, with legal storefronts being the most common source since 2019. A smaller proportion reported accessing cannabis through illegal sources (3%) compared to 2019 (16%).
  • 18% of people who had used cannabis in the past 12 months reported driving after cannabis use, a significant decline from 27% in 2018.
  • There was no change in rates of cannabis use among youth (age 16-19) over the past year. Past 12-month cannabis use among youth aged 16-19 was 41%, similar to several previous years (44%, 44%, and 43% in 2019, 2020 and 2023 respectively).
  • Overall, the proportion of respondents who said they used cannabis and reported daily, or almost daily use has been stable since 2018 (approx. 25%), including among youth (approx. 20%).
  • The percentage of people in Canada who said they use cannabis who are ‘at high risk’ of developing problems from cannabis use has remained stable since 2018 (approx. 3%).

Health Canada has made significant investments to educate youth and young adults about the health risks of cannabis, as they are at an increased risk of experiencing adverse effects from cannabis use since the brain continues to develop up until around the age of 25. These efforts include the Spring 2022 Reduce your risk: Choose legal cannabis public education campaign, the Prevention of Accidental Paediatric Cannabis Poisonings among Children campaign in Spring 2023, and the Pursue Your Passion: A Teen Cannabis Education Program, which was re-launched in March 2023 as a virtual program to educate youth and young adults about the health effects of cannabis. The department has also produced public education material that emphasizes the importance of storing cannabis securely away from children and pets.



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Marijuana Moment: GOP Leaders Blocked Schumer’s Push To Include Cannabis Banking Reform In Government Funding Bill, Senate Source Says

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MM write

Republican House and Senate leadership “openly and solely blocked” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-NY) attempt to include bipartisan marijuana banking legislation in a government funding bill, a Senate source familiar with the negotiations tells Marijuana Moment.

As bicameral lawmakers have worked to put together a continuing resolution to keep the government funded, Schumer repeatedly urged colleagues across the aisle to incorporate the Secure and Fair Enforcement Regulation (SAFER) Banking Act, to no avail. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) and House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) killed that prospective deal, the source said.

“Schumer pushed for SAFER Banking at the negotiation table in the CR multiple times. This week, both Speaker Johnson and Leader McConnell strongly rejected it,” they said. “For years some Republicans have done a dance telling marijuana businesses that they supported SAFER, while Republican leadership has openly and solely blocked it at every turn.”

GOP Leaders Blocked Schumer’s Push To Include Marijuana Banking Reform In Government Funding Bill, Senate Source Says



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Brazil: Parliamentary Front of Medicinal Cannabis and Industrial Hemp Announce Funded Cannabis Projects

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The Parliamentary Front of Medicinal Cannabis and Industrial Hemp held the last meeting of 2024 in the Plenary Dom Pedro I, in the Legislative Assembly of Sao Paulo (Alesp). On the occasion, the eight winning projects of the 2nd edict of parliamentary amendments, defined by the Deliberative Council of the Front, were  announced.

Sechat

State deputies Caio France and Eduardo Suplicy, coordinator and deputy coordinator of the Front, allocated R$ 1 million from the 2025 budget of individual tax amendments to finance the initiatives. Each parliamentarian contributed R$ 500 thousand, encouraging projects covering medical cannabis and industrial hemp.

Projects selected by universities and third sector entities

Of the more than 30 projects enrolled, half were submitted by public universities, such as Unicamp, Unesp and Unifesp, while the rest came from third sector organizations, city halls and state institutions. The requested values varied between R$ 50 thousand and R$ 500 thousand, with proposals covering production of informative materials, clinical studies, congresses and development of technologies related to medical cannabis.

Among the themes of the projects, we highlight studies on chronic pain, online training courses, evaluations of cannabis use in people with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and the creation of digital platforms with data on therapeutic responses.

Legislative advances and national impact

Deputy Caio France celebrated the advances made in 2024, such as the inclusion of cannabis in the Brazilian Pharmacopoeia and the decision of the Superior Court of Justice (STJ) allowing the cultivation of hemp for medicinal, pharmaceutical and industrial purposes. “State law 17,618/23 was instrumental in driving these changes. The discussions held at the meetings of the Parliamentary Front served as a guide in the selection of projects,” highlighted France.

How to follow up on the ad

The audience will be broadcast live on the Alesp Network channel on YouTube, and the results will be available on the official website of the Parliamentary Front (www.fpcannabis.co.uk).

https://sechat.com.br/noticia/frente-parlamentar-da-cannabis-medicinal-divulga-projetos-selecionados-em-edital-de-2024?utm_medium=email&_hsmi=100194737&utm_content=100194737&utm_source=hs_email



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