Pubdate: Wed, 25 Jun 2014
Source: Seattle Times (WA)
Copyright: 2014 The Seattle Times Company
Contact:  http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/409
Author: Bob Young
Page: B1

STATE'S HIGH PRIORITY AS POT STORES OPEN: SAFETY

Edible Products Have Safeguards

Officials Stress Importance of Protecting Kids' Health

With state pot retail stores poised to open July 8, Gov. Jay Inslee 
stressed that state officials will make protecting children's health 
paramount as the historic industry begins selling products.

But Sharon Foster, chair of the state Liquor Control Board, said a 
local doctor told her he hadn't seen a spike in emergency-room visits 
by teens. Instead more baby boomers were coming to the ER, Foster 
said, probably after overdosing on pot-infused snacks, like New York 
Times columnist Maureen Dowd, who wrote about her "panting and 
paranoid" experience after eating too much of a candy bar in Colorado.

Foster and Inslee reiterated that state rules governing the new 
recreational-pot system already call for many safeguards. Packages 
for edible products must be child-resistant and can't contain images 
appealing to children, such as cartoon characters.

All pot products must have labels stating their chemical content and 
offering warnings about the risks of marijuana. Labels also will tell 
consumers about the delayed effects of edibles and urge them after 
their first bites to wait two hours before having more.

A rule expected to be passed by the Liquor Control Board on Wednesday 
would require edibles here to be scored, so a consumer can easily 
break off a single dose, and homogenized, so the psychoactive 
chemicals are spread evenly.

State officials also touted brochures and radio ads meant to educate 
consumers and parents. And they pointed to cheeky TV ads, borrowed 
from Colorado, that remind consumers they can't drive while high.

Washington State Patrol Chief John Batiste said there were more than 
200 officers in the state specially trained to recognize 
drug-impaired driving. Since the law legalizing adult possession of 
weed took effect in 2012, Batiste said troopers "really haven't seen 
a tremendous uptick" in pot-impaired driving.

Foster said about 20 retail stores would be licensed July 7, and 
several could open the next day. But she said those stores might not 
have edibles on their shelves; the state hasn't yet licensed any 
commercial kitchens to be used by processors.

Foster pointed to the University of Washington Alcohol and Drug Abuse 
Institute's website as a particularly helpful place for adult 
consumers and parents to get accurate information.

"The website is absolutely fantastic and regularly updated with 
information from around the world," she said.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom