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“No Patient Left Behind,” the ninth
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Speakers announced for Upcoming Unity Conference
ASA’s annual
National Medical Cannabis Unity Conference will feature more than 30
distinguished speakers sharing their insights and experience with
conference attendees over two days of informative panel discussions
and presentations.
Patient advocates include Mara Gordon of Aunt Zelda’s™, Octopi Wellness, and Zelira Therapeutics; Rylie Maedler of Rylie's Smile Foundation & Rylie's Sunshine LLC; Parisa Mansouri-Rad of Fourtwenty and MjMomma Consulting; Mskindness Ramirez of Club Kindness; Nicole Redler from Eaze; Abbey Roudebush from the Epilepsy Foundation; and Super Bowl winner Marvin Washington from Athletes for CARE.
Regulators and legislators include Andrew Brisbo of the Michigan Regulatory Agency; Trelaine Ito, Legislative Assistant, Office of U.S. Senator Brian Schatz (D-HI); Pavel Pachta from ICCI; state representatives Chris Rabb of Pennsylvania andYousef Rabhi of Michigan; and Chaney Turner of the City of Oakland, California Cannabis Commission.
Physicians include Larry Bedard, MD from the American Medical Association Cannabis Task Force; Danni Gordon, MD from the UK Medical Cannabis Clinicians Society; Janice Knox, MD from the Doctors Knox; and Dustin Sulak, DO from Healer.com & Integr8Health.
Nurses include Amy Dawn Bourlon-Hilterbran from Millennium Grown and American Medical Refugees Foundation; cannabis nurse advocate Ivory Davis; and Cherissa Jackson from AMVETS.
Scientists include Brandie M. Cross, PhD from The Pot Lab; Holly E. Johnson, PhD of the American Herbal Products Association; Philippe Lucas, PhD from Tilray; Nandakumara D. Sarma, RPh, PhD of the U. S. Pharmacopeia; and Élan Sudenburg from Alkemists Labs.
Attorneys include Michael Hiller; Lenita Y. SimsSpears; and Sheri L. Tarr.
Journalists who will be moderating panels include Ryan Basen of MedPage Today; Abbie Bennett of Connecting Vets; David Downs of Leafly.com; and Mona Zhang of Politico.
Register today to attend at hopin.com/events/unity2021.
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PFC Unveiling New Patient’s Guide at Unity Conference
At ASA’s upcoming National Medical Cannabis Unity Conference, the PFC Business Certification and Training program will be releasing the new Patient's Guide to Contaminants, which highlights some of the major contaminants that may be found on cannabis and hemp products and identifies the laboratory testing needed to detect them. This guidance document will also identify current state testing requirements, lack of federal guidelines, and what can be done to help harmonize the differing regulations.
PFC has also recently updated more training courses, including the National Cannabis Standards Training course for Cultivation Operators, Understanding Cannabis Law, and Maryland State Compliance Training.
After months of development and review, the new PFC Standard has been approved and released. The PFC Standard is used as the benchmark for the PFC Business Certification Program and is now available for regulators. Requests for copies or more information can be sent to [email protected].
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ASA Weighs in on Biden’s Cannabis-related Firings
Following reports that the Biden
administration terminated or suspended several White House staffers
for disclosing past cannabis use, ASA Executive Director Debbie
Churgai published an opinion piece in The Hill questioning the new
administration’s promised commitment to equity in hiring and policy
reform. In it, she also notes troubling signs that the administration
is backing away from support for federal legislation such as the MORE
Act, which would harmonize federal policy with state cannabis programs
and remove barriers to medical research. Check
out ASA’s Op-Ed in The Hill.
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ASA Urges Department of Justice to Update Federal Cannabis Guidance
A new ASA blog identifies a critical
step the Biden administration can take to address the disconnect
between federal and state cannabis laws. In it, ASA urges the
Department of Justice (DOJ) to update its guidance memos for federal
prosecutors and financial services regulators. Restrictions Congress
has imposed on the DOJ budget prevent it from using any funds to
interfere with state medical cannabis programs, which courts have said
extends to any individuals in compliance with state medical cannabis
laws. Updated DOJ memos would serve to more clearly identify what
counts as compliance with federal policies. The blog is at www.safeaccessnow.org/bidendoj_blog.
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ASA Founder Discusses Cannabis Policy on Podcast
ASA Founder and President Steph Sherer did a spot March 25 on the Rick Unger Show, a podcast that features a mix of political viewpoints. Sherer discussed why President Biden’s cannabis policies are outdated and what can be done about it. The podcast can be accessed at www.rickungarshow.com/bidens-outdated-cannabis-policies-with-guest-steph-sherer/.
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ASA to Present at Cannaworldexpo and University of Maryland
Join ASA at the Cannaworldexpo one-year celebration event on Saturday 4/17. ASA's Executive Director, Debbie Churgai, will be presenting the US Update on Patient Access on Saturday 4/17 at 9:00 am PT/12 pm ET. To register for this free event, visit: cannaworldexpo.com/register.
Churgai will also be a keynote speaker at the University of Maryland School of Pharmacy’s Medical Cannabis Science and Therapeutics master's degree program on Friday, April 23rd. The school’s MS in Medical Cannabis Science and Therapeutics is a two-year graduate degree program that provides students with comprehensive education in the science of medical cannabis, its therapeutic uses, and the policies that govern it use in medicine and research. Twice a year, students come together for a symposium that includes seminars by cannabis experts and opportunities for networking with professional in the field.
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Activist Profile: Nikki Lawley, Buffalo, New York
It was just a routine vaccination. As a pediatric nurse, Nikki Lawley had done more than she could count, including with kids like this one, who really didn’t want the shot. But the child turned combative and suddenly headbutted her, snapping her head back against the wall. She didn’t realize it immediately, but the double impact and whiplash would change her life. She’d just sustained a serious traumatic brain injury and now had cervical instability. Headaches, memory loss, insomnia, mood disturbance, anxiety and depression took control of her life.
Even though she was a
medical professional, getting a diagnosis and appropriate care was a
battle. She was no longer a nurse; she was a woman with invisible
injuries facing off with a series of skeptical physicians. Because the
injury occurred on the job, she was also caught between New York
state’s workers’ compensation and her private insurance company. Her
insurance wouldn’t pay for anything to do with it, and workers’ comp
had many restrictions on what it would cover. She cycled through more
than 50 different medications, many with side effects more serious
than the symptoms of her injury. But workers’ comp refused to pay for
any alternative treatments, forcing Nikki to tap into her life
savings.
Within three short months, Nikki was at her wits’ end. The side effects of the medications were excruciating, the battles with medical professionals were exhausting and humiliating, and the loss of her sense of self and her ability to work left her with no purpose in life.
“I was suicidal,” she says.
Her struggle was obvious to those who cared about her. In an attempt to lift her spirits, her husband booked the two of them a trip to a favorite place: Las Vegas.
She was in no real shape to travel, but couldn’t say no to a loving gesture. Once they got to the hotel, she couldn’t leave the room. After trying and failing to convince her to try doing something fun, her husband went for a walk, and Nikki found herself on the balcony, seven stories up, frightened but making a plan to end it. As she looked down at the street below, a billboard truck rolled by that said “Get your Nevada medical marijuana card here today.”
In nursing school, Nikki had learned nothing about the
endocannabinoid system or cannabis, and like many medical
professionals did not consider cannabis to be medicine. Having
exhausted every pharmaceutical treatment possible and every
alternative treatment she could find and afford, she was out of
options. The billboard truck rolled by again. Nikki made a
decision.
She got her Nevada card and went to a dispensary.
“The budtender was a young guy who was really caring and took the time to talk to me about all the options – lozenges, tinctures, everything,” Nikki says. “I tried them all, but only smoked indica-dominant flower helped.”
Cannabis got Nikki off the ledge – figuratively and literally – but when she got back to New York from Las Vegas, she discovered she was not allowed access to the type of medicine that helped her.
“In 2017, New York did not allow smokeable cannabis and capped the amount of THC,” Nikki recalls. “And chronic pain wasn’t on the list of qualifying conditions.”
The limits on New York’s medical cannabis program forced Nikki to travel regularly from Buffalo, NY to stay with friends in Ontario, Canada, where she could get legal access to the types of cannabis medicine that alleviate her pain and TBI symptoms. The pandemic restrictions stopped her ability to travel, forcing her to consider moving to somewhere with less restrictive rules. Last week, New York finally made smokeable flower legal for patients in the state, thanks to the tireless efforts of activists such as Nikki who worked for years to educate lawmakers and the public.
“I am excited to see the medical program expansion include smokable whole plant medicine!” Nikki says. “The consumption piece means I won’t live in fear about where I can consume my medicine, but the biggest win, I believe, is the way the law addresses social equity and justice!”
Nikki may have not planned on being an activist, but since she realized the need to come out of the shadows and tell her story, she’s embraced the role wholeheartedly. She contributes regularly to several online support groups for others with head injuries as well as medical cannabis groups. She’s an active member of ASA, and has been the subject of more than two dozen news articles, podcasts, and blogs, where she tells her story fearlessly so that others may draw strength and inspiration from it. Many of those stories and interviews can be found at https://linktr.ee/Nikkilawley.
“Becoming an advocate for cannabis was never what I imagined,” Nikki says. “But by telling my story I have more impact now than I had as a nurse.”
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Action Alert: Stop Drug Testing Federal Workers
Federal employees and contractors are currently prohibited from using cannabis, even for medical purposes, and are subject to random drug testing. Many are veterans or seniors who may benefit from or already use medical cannabis. Join ASA in urging the Biden administration to end this discriminatory practice. Take action today at www.safeaccessnow.org/bidenopm.
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