NORFOLK COUNTY - Ontario Provincial Police say officers used naloxone to save a man's life while transporting him to Hamilton's Barton Street jail. Norfolk OPP credit "quick-thinking" officers for helping the 29-year-old man who appeared to have overdosed on opioids Friday afternoon. They administered three doses of naloxone, which is used to revive people in medical distress after taking drugs such as fentanyl. The man regained consciousness and began to respond to officers. Paramedics transferred him to hospital. [continues 111 words]
Concern that sites will be clustered in the inner city Just a few years ago, supervised consumption sites seemed like a pipe dream for public health advocates in Edmonton. But the opioid crisis, highlighted by alarming rates of fentanyl overdose deaths, sparked a major shift in public opinion and policy. In October, Health Canada officially gave the green light to five sites in Alberta, including four in Edmonton - all of which are scheduled to be up and running in early 2018. [continues 326 words]
Cannabis 101: Here's what you need to know about recreational marijuana With recreational marijuana becoming available for sale on New Year's Day, you may be asking yourself: Do I want to try this stuff? If you have never used cannabis, or if it has been a long time since you have, you need to know that pot isn't just consumed through joints and bongs anymore. Consumers also use vape pens, edibles and other products. And marijuana has higher amounts of THC -- pot's psychoactive ingredient -- than it once did. In the early 1990s, the average amount of THC in confiscated marijuana samples was roughly 3.7 percent, according to the National Institute of Drug Abuse. Now, many retail strains test in the high 20s and some even top 30 percent. [continues 626 words]
Mayor Valerie Plante said she had a 'very good' first meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, with the two discussing pot legalization and her Pink Line vision. Montreal Mayor Valerie Plante declared she had a "very good" first meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Tuesday - an opportunity she used to discuss the imminent legalization of marijuana as well as public transit. Speaking to reporters at city hall afterward, Plante said she was reassured by Trudeau's remarks on the legalization of marijuana, scheduled for July 1. [continues 223 words]
OTTAWA - A new Health Canada survey shows that Canadians are hazy on the risks of driving high. Only half of respondents who had consumed cannabis in the past year felt that marijuana use affects driving, according to the Canadian Cannabis Survey, released Tuesday, compared with 75 per cent of all respondents. Another 24 per cent said it depends, while 19 per cent said cannabis doesn't affect driving. Of those who had used marijuana in the last 12 months, 39 per cent said they had driven within two hours of consuming cannabis at some point in their lives. Forty per cent of those said they had done it in the previous 30 days, and 15 per cent said they had driven after using cannabis in combination with alcohol. Only two per cent reported an interaction with police related to driving under the influence. [continues 403 words]
McDonald believes production facility should be located in rural area St. Anthony Mayor Desmond McDonald believes the province's marijuana production facility should be located in a rural area. He also sees opportunities for business with the province's plan to legalize marijuana. The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador announced on Dec. 8 that it has signed a deal to lock in a supply of cannabis and cannabis products from Canadian company Canopy Growth, ahead of the legalization of marijuana for recreational use in July 2018. [continues 311 words]
Province releases first decisions on cannabis regulation after public engagement After receiving input from 48,951 British Columbians and submissions from 141 local and Indigenous governments and other interested stakeholders, the provincial government made some decisions on the anticipated legalization of non-medical cannabis in July 2018. On Dec. 5, the NDP government announced the following policy decisions: Minimum age The Province will set the minimum age to possess, purchase and consume cannabis at 19 years old. A minimum age of 19 is consistent with B.C.'s minimum age for alcohol and tobacco and with the age of majority in B.C. [continues 671 words]
Most Albertans support the provincial government's proposed regulations for legalized marijuana, according to a new Insights West poll. Almost two-thirds of respondents to the online poll agree with the decision to prevent pot stores from selling alcohol, tobacco or pharmaceuticals, while 77 per cent favour setting 18 as the legal age for buying marijuana. While 60 per cent of Albertans support legalization, up five percentage points since a national poll done in October 2016, the poll found a split along party lines. [continues 310 words]
Fines, probation for Marc and Jodie Emery TORONTO * Prominent pot activists Jodie and Marc Emery have been fined and placed on probation after pleading guilty to a number of drug- related charges in a Toronto court. Marc Emery, the self-proclaimed "Prince of Pot," pleaded guilty to possession of marijuana for the purpose of trafficking, trafficking marijuana and possession of proceeds of crime more than $5,000. Jodie Emery pleaded guilty to possession of marijuana for purpose of trafficking and possession of proceeds of crime over $5,000. [continues 491 words]
CAMBRIDGE - An innovative new peer-based pilot project will be launched in Cambridge early next year with the aim of curbing improper needle disposal in the community. The project is a partnership between Region of Waterloo Public Health, which will provide funding, Sanguen Health Centre and the City of Cambridge. Along with removing needles through patrols and education, it will offer employment and skill development to people who have experienced substance abuse; they will be hired as the peer workers. "There is no harm in trying other methods to connect people and get them on board," said Violet Umanetz, Sanguen's outreach manager. "The peers do so well working in the community." [continues 538 words]
Canada is on pace to lose more than 4,000 people to opioid-related deaths this year - with about one-third of them in British Columbia, according to new figures from the Public Health Agency of Canada. The grim update was in a national report the federal government released on Monday. The report described the country's opioid crisis as "serious and growing," devastating families and communities nationwide. "Tragically, the data released today indicate that the crisis continues to worsen, despite the efforts from all levels of government and partners to reverse the trend," chief public health officer Theresa Tam and Nova Scotia chief medical officer of health Robert Strang, co-chairs of Canada's special advisory committee on opioids, said in a statement. [continues 517 words]
In the wake of a deadly opioid drug crisis that's killed hundreds in Ontario, London health officials are fast-tracking a pop-up, - -overdose-prevention site they want to have up and running by January. The stripped-down version of a supervised consumption site will give drug users a safer environment to inject. The location of the site, or the total number if there is more than one, hasn't been pinned down. But the plan is to have at least one as early as possible in 2018. [continues 747 words]
Officers fear SIU probe if they can't revive opioid OD victims with naloxone WINDSOR - The fear of officers getting into a legal jam for trying to save someone from an overdose has made the Windsor police service hesitant to embrace a medication that fights the effects of opioids. Police officials are not rushing to use naloxone, despite the province's offer to pay for it, because officers who try and fail to revive someone from an overdose would face an investigation by the Special Investigations Unit (SIU). [continues 235 words]
Predicting a "mess" of traffic chaos and policing problems when the province opens a cannabis retail store in Windsor, Coun. Jo-Anne Gignac Monday called for the city to have some input on the location. Her motion, passed by council, involves expressing concerns about increased policing demands and making the province aware the city has a designated entertainment district downtown where there is already a beefed-up police presence. "I'm expressing concern that I want to make sure it's done right," she said. [continues 225 words]
Keewatin-Patricia public school board trustees not up for blowing smoke Legalized marijuana concerns public school board trustees. With the legalization of marijuana closer to becoming a reality the Keewatin-Patricia District School Board is concerned how the new law could impact its students. During the Dec. 12 monthly board meeting the educational aspect of the topic was brought up, though everyone agreed to wait until the Ministry of Education provides some direction on how to proceed with the issue. Many of the board members expressed concern students might acquire the stimulant "off the streets" since they wouldn't be of legal age to purchase it in stores. [continues 284 words]
Albertans high on province's marijuana plans: Poll Most Albertans support the provincial government's proposed regulations for legalized marijuana, according to a new Insights West poll. Almost two-thirds of respondents to the online poll agree with the decision to prevent pot stores from selling alcohol, tobacco or pharmaceuticals, while 77 per cent favour setting 18 as the legal age for buying marijuana. While 60 per cent of Albertans support legalization, up five percentage points since a national poll done in October 2016, the poll found a split along party lines. [continues 171 words]
WINKLER'S mayor vows that until the smoke clears on pot legalization, his community won't vote to allow retailers to sell recreational pot. Mayor Martin Harder says his council recently decided to ignore the province's Dec. 22 deadline to vote on the issue. "Our biggest issue is the rules keep changing," Harder said on Monday. "They said you have to vote by Dec. 22 and then the next one says you can have four years to have a plebiscite. We don't want to do that. [continues 443 words]
Some details of legalized recreational marijuana have changed since California voters approved Proposition 64 in 2016. California is days away from launching a legal marketplace for adults to buy and sell recreational marijuana. On Jan. 1, the state will carry through on a vision voters endorsed by passing Proposition 64 last year. Yet as legal cannabis moves from campaign pitch to reality - amid lots of lobbying by industry groups along the way - some details of the plan have changed. State regulators approved the official rules last month and will update them in about a year. [continues 954 words]
For Jack in the Box Inc., the warm smell of marijuana is rising in the air. As California prepares for legal recreational pot on Jan. 1, the fast-food chain is partnering with a digital media company backed by rapper Snoop Dogg on a new "munchie" meal aimed at cannabis enthusiasts. While marijuana's connection to fast food is well-established, Jack in the Box will become the first national chain to explicitly embrace the drug. The "Merry Munchie Meal," which will be available at three California locations for a week in January for $4.20, features two tacos, french fries, onion rings, five mini churros, three chicken strips and a small drink. The price isn't random: The number 420 is used as a code by potheads. [continues 283 words]
MONTPELIER, Vt. (AP) - With the state Legislature expected to take up legalizing the recreational use of marijuana in the upcoming session, several doctors and other marijuana opponents on Friday urged the state not to legalize it. The move would normalize the use of marijuana, leading to more people using it and in turn to more intoxicated people and more automobile crashes, said Dr. John Hughes, a University of Vermont psychiatrist and professor, at a Statehouse press conference on Friday. "To me, we got it right with decriminalization," according to Hughes, who added that legalization and describing it as recreational use would send the wrong message. [continues 287 words]
