Marijuana & Smokefree Multi-Unit Housing Discussion
Join partner Annie Murphy for an open facilitated Zoom discussion around the intersection of marijuana legislation and smokefree air policies. April's meeting will feature information about marijuana and smokefree multi-unit housing policies. Register here.
Apr 30, 2024 at 11:30 AM
May 28, 2024 at 11:30 AM
Jun 25, 2024 at 11:30 AM
Smoke-Free Weed-Free Multifamily Housing
GASP President Pete Bialick, Peggy Sarcomo with Denver Department of Public Health and Environment, and Attorney Annie Murphy with Dufford Waldeck were recently invited by Belinda Waldron of the Colorado Housing and Finance Authority to provide an online webinar on marijuana use in multifamily housing. Murphy is a real estate attorney and a GASP member and advisor. Thirty-eight housing managers and attorneys attended the two-hour training where we covered the following topics:
· The health impact of secondhand marijuana smoke.
· The benefits of a smoke-free housing policy that includes smoking or vaping of marijuana.
· Enforcement steps that properties can use to prohibit or restrict the smoking or vaping of marijuana
· Understanding and responding to the “reasonable accommodations” requests made under the federal Fair Housing Act.
· Affordable housing providers’ responsibilities regarding prohibiting the use of marijuana in federally subsidized housing and HUD’s sample smoke-free policies for public housing
· A property owner or manager’s protected right to prohibit the use of marijuana in rental housing.
A video of the training is available here.
The presentation and other documents are available at these links:
The training was repeated for tobacco-prevention grantees in Colorado whose programs are funded under the Colorado tobacco tax. In addition, we provided a recap of the training for a national monthly Zoom conference on marijuana and smoke-free air office hours held by Americans for Nonsmokers’ Rights and chaired by Char Day.
The Group to Alleviate Smoking Pollution‘s Position on Marijuana Smoking and Vaping
The Group to Alleviate Smoking Pollution (GASP of Colorado) is a 501-C-3 statewide nonprofit organization working to eliminate secondhand smoke from the air we breathe at work, in public places, and in multiunit housing. GASP’s primary concerns with the public’s exposure to marijuana smoking or vaping are regarding the chemical and particulate emissions and their public health impact. Nobody should have to breathe secondhand marijuana smoke or vapors against their will at work, in public, or where they live. Visit gaspforair.org for more information about GASP.
Marijuana Smoking Associated With and an Increased Risk of Heart Attack, Stroke
While GASP’s focus is on protecting the public from the exposure to secondhand smoke, there are many more people trying or using marijuana in Colorado and the United States. GASP knows people who use marijuana and as we did with tobacco in our early years, we may share studies in our newsletter from time to time about the health dangers of using marijuana, the marijuana industry, and the risk to hooking youth early to a lifetime of dependence.
For example, on the NBC nightly news story about this recent study, Dr. Robert Page at the University of Colorado school of Medicine said that “smoking marijuana is as bad as smoking cigarettes.” Read it here.
The study found that frequent cannabis smoking may significantly increase a person’s risk for heart attack and stroke, according to an observational study supported by the National Institutes of Health. The study, published in the Journal of the American Heart Association, uses data from nearly 435,000 American adults, and is among the largest ever to explore the relationship between cannabis and cardiovascular events.
The study, funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of NIH, found that daily use of cannabis — predominately through smoking — was associated with a 25% increased likelihood of heart attack and a 42% increased likelihood of stroke when compared to non-use of the drug. Less frequent use was also associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular events. Weekly users showed a 3% increased likelihood of heart attack and a 5% increased likelihood of stroke. See more details here.
Has the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Approved Cannabis or Cannabinoids for Medical Use?
The FDA has not approved the cannabis plant for any medical use. However, the FDA has approved several drugs that contain individual cannabinoids.
▪Epidiolex, which contains a purified form of CBD derived from cannabis, was approved for the treatment of seizures associated with Lennox-Gastaut syndrome or Dravet syndrome, two rare and severe forms of epilepsy.
▪Marinol and Syndros, which contain dronabinol (synthetic THC), and Cesamet, which contains nabilone (a synthetic substance like THC), are approved by the FDA. Dronabinol and nabilone are used to treat nausea and vomiting caused by cancer chemotherapy. Dronabinol is also used to treat loss of appetite and weight loss in people with HIV/AIDS.
Is it legal for dietary supplements or foods to contain THC or CBD?
The FDA has determined that products containing THC or CBD cannot be sold legally as dietary supplements. Foods to which THC or CBD has been added cannot be sold legally in interstate commerce. Whether they can be sold legally within a state depends on that state’s laws and regulations.
Are cannabis or cannabinoids helpful in treating health conditions?
Drugs containing cannabinoids may be helpful in treating certain rare forms of epilepsy, nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy, and loss of appetite and weight loss associated with HIV/AIDS. In addition, some evidence suggests modest benefits of cannabis or cannabinoids for chronic pain and multiple sclerosis symptoms. Cannabis isn’t helpful for glaucoma. Research on cannabis or cannabinoids for other conditions is in its early stages.
Pete Bialick, President, GASP