Published by Ben AdlinBen:  Adlin is a Seattle-based writer and editor. He has covered cannabis as a journalist since 2011, most recently as a senior news editor for Leafly.
In Marijuana Moment on August 15, 2023 – Link

A new study in the International Journal of Drug Policy found that states with legal medical marijuana enjoyed significant reductions in health insurance premiums compared to states where cannabis remained completely illegal.

Analyzing a decade’s worth of private health insurance data from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, researchers determined that in the years following a state’s implementation of a medical cannabis law, premiums dropped dramatically.

While the reductions were modest immediately following implementation, the study found that by seven years afterward, annual premiums had fallen $1,663 compared to states in the control group. Similar reductions were seen after eight years ($1,542) and nine years ($1,626), indicating that the decline was fairly stable over time.

“Although the effect does not begin until seven years post-medical cannabis law implementation,” the authors conclude, “there is a significant and sizable reduction in health insurance premiums” in states that legalize medical marijuana.

“Due to the nature of insurance pooling and community rating,” they add, “these savings are appreciated by cannabis users and non-users alike.”

As the study’s authors point out, the findings undermine concerns that legalization would risk increasing healthcare costs. “Initial concerns about medical cannabis legalization leading to increases in medical care costs, which would be reflected in higher insurance premiums, appear to be unfounded,” they wrote.

Researchers were specifically looking at individual private health plans rather than employer-sponsored insurance plans or Medicaid. The study notes that health insurance spending in the U.S. accounts for between 16 percent and 34 percent of the average household budget.

In an attempt to control for other variables, authors focused on states where only medical marijuana was legal, excluding from the analysis states where adult-use legalization was already in effect. States in the control group, meanwhile, included those without medical cannabis or those that had passed but not yet implemented a such a policy

Authors acknowledged that there appeared to be a difference in premium reductions based on how early a state implemented its medical cannabis law, though more investigation is needed. “For early, mid, or late adopting states,” they wrote, “there seems to be a small increase in premium in the second full years after enactment. However, early moving states continue to see a decline in premiums for years 3 through 9, whereas mid-adopting states see an attenuated impact on premiums after year 3.”

Authors of the research paper were Amanda C. Cook, an economics professor at Bowling Green State University; E. Tice Sirmans, a professor in Illinois State University’s department of finance, insurance and law; and Eastern Michigan University economics professor Amanda Stype.

The new paper adds to a growing body of research identifying the potential public health benefits associated with ending prohibition. A number of studies, for example, have found that states with medical marijuana have significantly lower rates of prescribed opioids. Earlier this year, a report found that adult-use legalization was similarly associated with “reductions in opioid demand.”

In March, a separate study determined that states with legal medical marijuana had lower opioid payments to doctors—another indication patients are using cannabis as an alternative to prescription drugs.

On the individual level, a recent study in the International Journal of Drug Policy found that cannabis significantly reduced opioid cravings for people using opioids without a prescription, suggesting that expanding access to legal cannabis could provide more people with a safer substitute.

A study published in January by the American Medical Association (AMA), meanwhile, found that roughly one-in-three chronic pain patients report using cannabis as a treatment option, and most of that group has used cannabis as a substitute for other pain medications, including opioids.

A separate AMA study found an association between state-level medical cannabis legalization and significant decreases in opioid prescriptions and use among certain cancer patients.

A study published in September found that giving people legal access to medical cannabis can help patients reduce or stop use of opioid painkillers without compromising their quality of life.

The same month, another study found that the pharmaceutical industry takes a serious economic hit after states legalize marijuana—with an average market loss of nearly $10 billion for drugmakers per each legalization event.



Article by – Marijuana Moment – June 30, 2023

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), a 2024 Republican presidential candidate, has signed a bill that expressly prohibits sober living facilities from allowing residents to possess or use medical marijuana, even if the patient is certified by a doctor to legally use cannabis therapeutically in accordance with state law. All other doctor-prescribed pharmaceutical medications may be permitted, however.

The governor signed the legislation, SB 210, on Tuesday—and he separately gave final approval to a hemp regulations measure that bans the sale of legal smokeless hemp products to people under 21.

Under the newly enacted SB 210, applicants who are seeking licensing to operate recovery residences under the state Department of Children and Families will need to affirm that they do not permit the use of cannabis, which “includes marijuana that has been certified by a qualified physician for medical use.”

But residents may continue to use other pharmaceutical drugs prescribed by doctors, so the law explicitly singles out medical marijuana.

In order to receive certification, a prospective recovery residence will need to provide documentation, including a policy and procedures manual. The new law will amend that requirement to specifically mandate that the manual includes a prohibition on marijuana, regardless of a person’s status as a medical cannabis patient.

DeSantis also signed SB 1676, a bill that revises hemp regulations in the state and includes a new provision that bars the sale of smokeless hemp products such as “snuff, chewing gum, and other smokeless products” to people under 21. The law previously only set the age restriction on smokable hemp items.

The governor further vetoed two criminal justice reform bills that aren’t specifically about cannabis. They would have revised expungements and sentencing statutes.

The governor did separately sign legislation this month that allows doctors to renew medical cannabis recommendations to patients via telehealth and also takes steps to promote participation in the state’s medical marijuana program by Black farmers.

DeSantis’s marijuana policy comments and actions have come under the spotlight since he entered the race—and especially since he said recently that he would not decriminalize cannabis if he’s elected to the White House.

He argued, among other things, that marijuana use hurts the workforce, inhibits productivity and could even lead to death if contaminated. The position has earned him criticism, including by Democratic presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

DeSantis also talked about Florida’s medical marijuana program that was enacted by voters, saying military veterans are “actually allowed access” to cannabis under that model. But he said the issue is “controversial because obviously there’s some people that abuse it and are using it recreationally.”

Link to article: https://www.marijuanamoment.net/desantis-signs-bill-prohibiting-medical-marijuana-at-florida-recovery-residences-even-if-recommended-by-doctor/



While not many “good” things happened throughout the pandemic, one good thing that did happen was that Medicaid was there to support the many people who became qualified for coverage as our economy suffered.

Yes, 5.6+ million Floridians currently receive Medicaid benefits, or about a quarter of the state’s population. For many, this coverage is about to end. Primarily due to the economic impacts resulting from the epidemic, Florida has added almost 1.8 million additional people to the Medicaid roll since 2020.

“At the start of the pandemic, Congress enacted the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA), which included a requirement that Medicaid programs keep people continuously enrolled through the end of the month in which the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) ends, in exchange for enhanced federal funding.” (Keiser Family Foundation) Well, the end of the public health emergency is about to happen.

CMS has required states to submit plans that explain how they are going to “unwind” their rolls. States have submitted various processes for approval and one method that will be used in Florida to look at continued eligibility is the most recent individual earnings data. In a recent legislative meeting, it was offered that almost 900,000 people no longer quality to receive Medicaid benefits and will be removed from the roll.

Another 850,000 people are targeted because either they have failed to respond to information requests or they haven’t used Medicaid benefits over the last two years. For Medicaid beneficiaries who may have moved, once, twice, or more over the last two years, they are in danger of losing their benefits, as mailed questionnaires likely have not found them.

For many of these individuals, other options may not be available. Because Florida did not expand Medicaid, families earning under the Federal Poverty Limits are not eligible to receive subsidies under the government run health exchanges. Said Erica Monet Li, a policy analyst at Florida Policy Institute, “This is a historic number of Floridians to potentially lose health coverage — one in 22 people — and all within the span of under 12 months.”

2023 will, indeed, be an interesting year.



October 05, 2022  — MJ Holdings Inc. (OTCQB: MJNE), a highly diversified, publicly traded, cannabis holding company, is excited to announce that John Tabacco VP of Digital Asset Strategy will be presenting the details of MJ Holdings’ groundbreaking Digital Asset Tokenization Project at the Web3X Expo on October 10th in Vegas at the Wynn. The company’s new project will position MJ Holdings as the global leader in combining cannabis farming and a digital tokenization strategy. “I have been developing first of its kind, Digital Assets since 2015. In my previous role as VP Technology at OVERSTOCK.coms crypto subsidiary Tzero we broke traditional norms using digital asset strategies in the e-commerce space and in the capital markets space. Now, we will combine MJ Holdings’ vast real estate portfolio, 260 acres of growable land at Amargosa Valley, the grow expertise of the MJ team and the unique corporate structure of MJ to merge legalized recreational cannabis and digital assets or utility tokens. For years companies have proposed pie in the sky ideas about tokenizing Marijuana crops, but to date a grand total of zero have successfully demonstrated the resources, capabilities and cannabis know-how to bring together these two emerging growth areas. Crypto and Cannabis.”

The Web3 Expo is being held in Las Vegas Oct 10-13 and Mr. Tabacco is scheduled to unveil the company’s first details of the MJ Fractional Farming Token Affiliate Program.

MJ Founder Paris Balaouras said “MJ has assembled a world class team of professional growers and we have done the hard work of putting together a state of the art world class facility with our 260 acres at Amargosa Valley. Now with John on board we intend to change the game in Tokenizing Cannabis Grow assets and using Blockchain and Digital tokens to streamline our process from grow to sale. I have been in the Cannabis Marijuana game for decades and never before have I seen one company with such a unique collection of resources, assets and professional talent come together in one project. There are still challenges faced by Marijuana growers around the country we believe this first pilot Token Program will be the first step in a massive paradigm shift in space. We are excited to lead the charge.”

MJ Holdings Director of Operations, Al Reasonover added “it had been a four year labor of love curating the Amargosa Farm and getting all the approvals, utilities and critical infrastructure in place to grow best in breed cannabis flower, indoor and outdoor. Now we look forward to combining our state of the art facility and grow expertise with this Ground Breaking Digital Strategy. We look forward to telling the world where MJ is heading at the Web3 Expo next week”

We look forward to sharing our vision for the future of combining cannabis and crypto when I present our forward token strategy at the WEB3X conference in Vegas on October 10, 2022. 

About MJ Holdings, Inc.

MJ Holdings Inc. (OTCPK: MJNE) is a highly diversified, publicly traded, cannabis holding company headquartered in the greater Las Vegas area. MJ Holdings currently provides cultivation management, licensing support, production management and asset and infrastructure development.



Cannabis is a rapidly evolving space, and regulations change daily. Laws are different at the federal and state level, and new legislation is introduced almost every session that affects everyone in the cannabis arena, including growers, manufacturers, dispensaries, legal and banking entities and more. Keeping pace with growing industry demand is challenging enough, let alone maintaining professional expansion goals.

To stay on top of these rapid changes and the ever-evolving market, Cannabis News Florida is making a change this October—the newspaper will be going completely online as a way to offer our readers breaking news, the most up-to-date coverage and more interactive features.

Instead of the static flipbook you’ve been used to, our new, interactive flipbook will enable you to simply run a cursor over an ad that’s caught your attention to link to that advertiser’s website. We’ll also be providing extra digital information—including videos—at the end of some stories to offer expanded content.

We’re making these changes in response to reader input; we asked what you wanted in an online survey as well as through a survey of conference attendees, and you requested a more immediate, interactive publication for the cannabis industry—and now you have it! But even as we move to a digital platform, the quality of our stories—and how state and national news specifically affects Florida’s cannabis industry—will still be the focus of our coverage.

Readers of South Florida Hospital News and Healthcare Report will continue to access SFHN&HR in both print and online, and the print edition will carry a scannable QR code in every issue to link to the latest edition of Cannabis News Florida.

As we kick off this new (digital) chapter in our cannabis industry coverage, please let us know what you think of the new format and feel free to offer any suggestions to make it even better. We love to hear from our readers and advertisers, and your input will help us continue to provide you with the most timely, useful information available.

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Charles can be reached at Charles@southfloridahospitalnews.com