Medical Cannabis Stakeholders Call on States for a Compassionate Response to Changing Hemp Laws

Описание: On Tuesday, January 20th, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) convened medical cannabis stakeholders to discuss the impacts of new federal hemp laws and ASA's policy briefing for State Policymakers, Governors, and Regulators, "Protecting Patient Access: A Compassionate Response to Changing Federal Hemp Laws." 

Download Protecting Patient Access: A Compassionate Response to Changing Hemp Laws: www.safeaccessnow.org/protect_patient_access

"Americans for Safe Access (ASA) has prepared this briefing to help state leaders navigate this moment with clarity, accuracy, and compassion... Effective responses must account not only for patients currently dependent on the unregulated hemp marketplace, but also for the conditions that made it their only viable option. Barriers such as cost, access deserts, and limited product availability, driven by competition for shelf space in adult-use markets, left patients with few options.” -Steph Sherer, Founder & Executive Director

For more than thirty years, states served as laboratories of democracy for medical cannabis. They built patient registries, safety standards, testing regimes, labeling systems, and clinical pathways—generating the real-world evidence that finally compelled HHS and FDA to recognize cannabis as having “currently accepted medical use.” These state-based experiments proved what federal policy refused to test.

Until Congress takes on the responsibility of this new recognition and integrates cannabis and cannabinoid therapies into U.S. healthcare systems, patient access remains in the states' hands. This means managing federal policy changes while protecting patients and public health. This briefing is designed to equip state leaders with the tools they need to respond compassionately to evolving federal hemp laws and protect current and future patient access. 

The briefing includes:

A clear explanation of the new hemp provisions and their real-world impact
Exploration of the limitations of Trump’s Executive Order
An analysis of why millions of patients depend on the hemp marketplace
Data on who cannabinoid medicines serve
Draft emergency legislation and executive actions to preserve access
States’ role in a national medical cannabis program

Steph Sherer, Founder and Executive Director, Americans for Safe Access

Steph Sherer is a pioneering international leader and expert in medical cannabis patient advocacy. Her personal experience with the therapeutic benefits of cannabis, combined with her background in political organizing, led her to establish ASA in 2002. Under her guidance, ASA has grown into the nation’s largest patient-centered organization dedicated to ensuring access to medical cannabis, bridging gaps in knowledge, policy, and regulation, and promoting its recognition as a legitimate medical therapy.

Codi Peterson, PharmD, Pediatric Pharmacist and Cannabis Science Educator

Dr. Peterson is a clinical pharmacist and educator working to bridge healthcare and cannabis science. He teaches pharmacology at UC Irvine and OCEMT, practices pharmacy in an emergency department, and specializes in evidence-based cannabinoid pharmacology.

Dr. Leigh Vinocur, Emergency Physician and Founder, Ananda Medical Practice and Consulting

A board-certified emergency physician, Dr. Vinocur is a leading expert in medical cannabis science and education. She chairs the Subcommittee on Medical Cannabis Science Training for Healthcare Providers on Maryland’s Cannabis Public Health Advisory Council and serves as a national spokesperson for the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP).

Shanetha Marable-Lewis, Executive Director, Veterans Initiative 22

Shanetha is a decorated Army combat veteran who proudly served in both Operation Enduring Freedom and Operation Iraqi Freedom. Veterans Initiative 22 is a non-profit organization whose mission is veteran suicide prevention with a focus on affordable access to medical cannabis for the veteran community. 

Sasha Kalcheff-Korn, Executive Director, Realm of Caring 

Having dedicated 13 years to nonprofit work, Sasha Kalcheff-Korn has focused her career on improving the well-being of others through education, advocacy, and research. As the Executive Director of Realm of Caring, she leads efforts to advance cannabis research, break stigmas through education, and empower individuals and families to take control of their health.

Take Action Today: www.safeaccessnow.org/states_act_access