Shannon Cloud’s daughter has been having seizures her whole life. She’s twenty years old, registered in Georgia’s medical cannabis program, and according to her mother, Senate Bill 220 — the “Putting Georgia’s Patients First Act” — represents the kind of flexibility that could finally let her doctors find a THC:CBD combination that actually works.

It’s been years in the making. And on May 12, 2026, Governor Brian Kemp signed it into law anyway — despite a group of physicians sending him a letter asking him to kill it. The claims in that letter deserve a much closer look than they’ve gotten. 

“It allows more flexibility for patients and doctors to access what’s really going to work for them,” Cloud told WABE, “taking away the really tight restrictions.”

Before Kemp signed SB220, a group of physicians had sent him a letter asking him to kill it — and the claims in that letter deserve a much closer look than they’ve gotten.

The Letter, and What It Actually Says

The letter, authored by psychiatrist Dr. Karen Drexler and signed by fellow physician Dr. Elizabeth McCord, among others, makes some incredibly bold claims.

It states that SB 220 would “authorize high-risk cannabis products, such as vapes and concentrates, that have no demonstrated safety or benefit for any medical condition” and warns of increased risks of “psychosis, addiction, seizures, heart attacks, cognitive impairment, and other serious health harms.”

It also frames the bill’s possession limit—12,000 milligrams of THC—as “the equivalent of more than 1,700 marijuana joints,” a number designed to strike worry and/or fear into anyone who is on the fence about medical marijuana.

But let’s take a look at these one at a time.

“No Demonstrated Safety or Benefit” — Says Who?

The claim that vaporized cannabis has no demonstrated safety or benefit for any medical condition is not supported by peer-reviewed literature, despite being stated in a letter to a sitting governor. 

A 2024 peer-reviewed paper published in Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research—a clinical review developed by physicians at the University of British Columbia and the University of Toronto—specifically examined cannabis vaporization as a medical delivery method. 

Their study found that it is appropriate for patients requiring fast-acting administration, with dried cannabis vaporizers and metered-dose inhalers presenting the lowest safety risk profile. 

Nobody writing this paper was side-eyeing vaporization as a delivery method. It treats it as a clinical tool that requires proper patient guidance, which is exactly what a functioning medical program with licensed dispensaries and physician oversight is designed to provide.

A meta-analysis of 15 randomized controlled trials found that patients using cannabinoids were significantly more likely to achieve meaningful pain reduction than those who didn’t. 

The American College of Physicians has published best practice guidance for clinicians on cannabis use for chronic pain management. Plus, the FDA has approved inhaled medications as a delivery method for decades.

The letter’s claim that cannabis poses a heart attack risk is also worth examining directly. 

A University of Colorado study analyzing nearly 1.3 million hospital records found that cannabis consumers were less likely to go into shock after a cardiac event and less likely to die from complications. 

That contrasts with the risks described in the letter. . The research is far from settled, but ‘increased risk of heart attacks’ is not what the existing literature consistently shows.

News coverage of the letter did not reference any data, studies, or citations to support its claims. 

1,700 Joints: A Number That Tells You More About the Argument Than the Bill

The “1,700 joints” figure is where the framing of the letter becomes clearer. 

Twelve thousand milligrams sounds alarming until you understand what it represents: a possession limit, not a dose. It’s the maximum amount a registered patient can have on hand at one time, not what they’re expected to consume in a sitting, a day, or even a week or month. 

The math behind “1,700 joints” assumes an average joint contains roughly seven milligrams of THC, and then presents the total as if patients are expected to smoke all of it immediately.

By that logic, a standard Costco bottle of extra-strength acetaminophen (roughly 400 tablets at 500mg each) could be framed as containing “enough Tylenol for 200,000 milligrams of acetaminophen.” 

The number is technically derived from real math. It’s also incompletely measured as a safety argument.

Georgia’s program requires physician authorization. Patients are registered. Dispensaries are licensed and regulated. 

The possession limit exists so patients with serious chronic conditions like multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, PTSD, and intractable pain can maintain an adequate supply without making repeated trips to a dispensary. 

That’s not a loophole. That’s how medical programs work.

The Playbook Is Familiar

Dr. Drexler’s primary evidence, as shared with WSB-TV, is personal: her husband’s uncle was a long-term cannabis user who developed delusions in his fifties, eventually attempting to set his house on fire. She says she’s “convinced, as a psychiatrist, that schizophrenia doesn’t start in one’s 50s, that this was cannabis-induced.”

That’s a tragedy. It’s also an anecdote being used to support broader claims about medical cannabis policy. 

There is legitimate scientific literature on cannabis and psychosis risk, particularly around high-potency use in adolescents and individuals with genetic predispositions to psychotic disorders. 

That research is real and worth discussing, but it’s not being ignored by any means. And the picture is considerably more nuanced than the letter suggests. 

Research out of Germany suggests CBD may have therapeutic potential for schizophrenia, with some studies comparing its effects to antipsychotic medications with fewer side effects, which is relevant context, considering the letter conflates THC and CBD under a single “cannabis causes psychosis” umbrella. 

The distinction matters in a clinical setting, and a well-regulated medical program is precisely where it is made.

What the letter offers instead of this nuance is sweeping declarative language— “no demonstrated safety or benefit,” “high-risk,” “serious health harms” —again, with no citations and no acknowledgment of the extensive literature pointing in the other direction.

This is not a new playbook. It’s the same one that the opposition has been using to block cannabis access for decades: alarming language, a focus on worst-case scenarios without broader context, and the rhetorical cover of “patient safety.” 

Invoke psychosis. Deploy a large scary number. Avoid the peer-reviewed literature that complicates the picture. Repeat. 

What Patients Are Actually Living With

Yolanda Bennett, a registered Georgia medical cannabis patient and member of the Georgia Medical Cannabis Society, testified before the Georgia House Judiciary Committee earlier this year with words that cut through all of it: “We are already sick and we’re tired.” 

She was speaking to the daily reality of navigating a program so restrictive that patients routinely get stopped and questioned by law enforcement. 

It’s not their fault that their legal medicine is indistinguishable by smell from illegal marijuana. Just existing as a patient in Georgia — legally, doing everything right — creates a burden that medical marijuana patients in the other 40 states with functioning medical programs never have to think about.

The Georgia Medical Cannabis Commission’s own 2026 annual report documented what patients told them about the current program: they didn’t even understand what they were being offered. 

Patients said that when they heard “low THC oil” they assumed it was a lower-quality product, a hemp product, or something that wouldn’t actually help them — and they went without. 

Not because the medicine didn’t exist. Because the program was built in a way that made it invisible and inaccessible to the people it was supposed to serve.

Mississippi and Louisiana — both smaller, both with their own complicated histories on cannabis — each serve approximately 50,000 registered medical patients. Georgia, with a population of 11.3 million, has 34,500. 

That’s the lowest adoption rate of any medical cannabis program in the country, in a state where two-thirds of residents support legalization.

Senate sponsor Matt Brass — who is also a physician — said it plainly: “For the patients that this program is designed to serve, it’s not always worked well enough.” 

That’s not an activist talking — that’s the doctor who wrote the bill. 

When Kemp signed the bill, he seemed to agree — stating in his signing remarks, “I also recognize that for some patients, medical cannabis provides significant relief to symptoms that would otherwise go untreated or would be treated with even more harmful opioids.” 

Protecting patients — in a state where families have faced criminal charges for treating a child’s seizures with the only thing that worked, a registered patient can’t carry her medicine without bracing for a police stop, and the state’s own commission reports patients walking away from the program because they didn’t know “low THC oil” was the real thing — that doesn’t look like a veto. 

It looks like finally giving this program the tools to function like one for the first time in the almost 10 years it’s been around.

One small but important note for patients eager to access new high-potency products: the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission has until January 1, 2027, to finalize testing and labeling regulations for the new formats.

Kemp signed SB 220 quietly on May 12th — no fanfare, no press conference, just a signature and a statement. Exactly how anyone paying attention might have predicted it would end. 

The doctors’ letter didn’t stop it. The “1,700 joints” math didn’t stop it. The anecdotes dressed up as evidence didn’t stop it. 

Georgia’s patients finally have a medical cannabis program that functions like one — and the clock the opposition was counting on ran out. 

This article is from an external, unpaid contributor. It does not represent High Times’ reporting and has not been edited for content or accuracy.

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A city councilmember in Atlanta has proposed a measure that could open the door for both psilocybin and ketamine treatments.

The councilmember, Liliana Bakhtiari, believes that health plans for city workers should include the treatments, which research has shown to be effective in combating mental health disorders such as PTSD.

“We should be offering our employees — and especially our first responders, who are expected to be superhuman — the same amount of grace and providing them with a tool set to essentially overcome this issue,” Bakhtiari said in an interview with Axios.

Per Axios, the proposal “tasks the city’s HR department with studying the pros and cons of ketamine and psilocybin to treat mental health issues and whether the employee health plan could cover the treatments.”

The outlet adds that “ketamine can be taken under the care of a psychiatrist” in Georgia, and that Bakhtiari “says she has used ketamine therapy to treat past trauma,” and that “some sessions can cost roughly $350 out of pocket.”

As a councilmember, Bakhtiari has been a vocal champion of the treatment and drug reform.

In 2022, Bakhtiari introduced a resolution that would have “formally request[ed] that police make it ‘the lowest law enforcement priority’ to investigate or arrest people for ‘planting, cultivating, purchasing, transporting, distributing, engaging in practices with, or possessing Entheogenic Plants, Fungi, and Spores or plant compounds,’” Marijuana Moment reported at the time.

With a growing body of research on the efficacy of psychedelics as a mental health treatment, more lawmakers across the country have pushed for reform.

Earlier this year in Vermont, lawmakers passed a measure to set up a working group to look into psychedelics and their application in therapy.

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore signed a similar bill into law earlier this month. The measure will create the “Task Force on Responsible Use of Natural Psychedelic Substances,” a 17-member panel that will make recommendations designed to “[enable] broad, equitable, and affordable access to psychedelic substances.”

The law requires the task force to make the recommendations “regarding any changes to State law, policies, and practices needed to create a program that enables broad, equitable, and affordable access to psychedelic substances; and requiring the Task Force to report its findings to the Governor and the General Assembly on or before July 31, 2025.”

Meanwhile, a bill recently introduced in the New York Assembly would legalized psilcoybin service centers.

The proposal would change the existing law “in relation to promoting the health and well-being of the citizens of the state of New York by establishing a comprehensive framework supporting public health and safety through regulated adult use, support services, and cultivation of psilocybin-containing fungi.”

Additionally, the bill would seat up the “Regulated Psilocybin Advisory Board,” comprised of 13 members who would be charged with studying laws and policies pertaining to psilocybin, and then provide recommendations to the state’s Department of Health. Per the text of the bill, the board would “develop a long-term strategic plan for ensuring that psilocybin services in the state will become and remain a safe, accessible and affordable therapeutic option, including in therapeutic and medical treatments, for all persons eighteen years of age and older for whom psilocybin services may be appropriate.”

A study published earlier this year revealed that individuals with major depressive disorder experienced improvement in their symptoms following intravenous ketamine infusion therapy.

The report, based on a clinical trial involving 75 patients across four sites in the United States, was published in the Journal of Affective Disorders.

The patients “received 3 IV ketamine infusions over an 11-day period.” 

“Key exclusion criteria were psychotic symptoms, significant substance abuse, unstable medical conditions, and any use of cannabis. Pre-existing antidepressant medication was maintained. Primary outcome was remission as measured by Montgomery-Asberg Depression Rating Scale (MADRS), with secondary outcome of 50 % reduction in Beck Suicide Scale score. Safety monitoring and varying durations of infusions were also key parameters,” the authors of the study wrote. 

“The consistency of outcomes across 4 clinical sites and across multiple instruments, suggests high acute efficacy and safety of IV ketamine for serious depressive episodes. Duration of infusion did not alter outcomes,” the authors wrote in their conclusion. 

“Meaningfully, 40 % of non-responders after a single infusion did reach remission subsequently, while only 20 % of non-responders after 2 infusions achieved remission, suggesting early response is suggestive for eventual remission. Our data on varying ketamine infusion duration adds novel insights into the clinical administration of this new treatment for refractory and severe patients. Our limitations included a lack of a control group, necessitating caution about conclusions of efficacy, balanced by the utility of reporting “real-world” outcomes across multiple clinical sites. We could also not separately analyze results for bipolar disorder due to small numbers. Together, the Bio-K clinical results are promising and provide significant sample sizes for forthcoming biological markers analyses.

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Georgia Governor Brian Kemp, a Republican, signed a legislative package on Tuesday, which his office described as “focused on supporting Georgia’s ever growing agricultural industry and improving security against foreign adversaries.”

The package, per the governor’s office, “tackles ownership of agricultural land or land near military installations by certain individuals acting as an agent of a foreign adversary, alleviates high input costs for our farmers and ranchers, protects children from misleading and dangerous marketing, and increases the penalty for livestock theft.”

“As valued members of our state’s number one industry, Georgia’s farming families deserve our enduring support as they face unprecedented challenges, including having to navigate disastrous federal energy policies, attempts by foreign adversaries to acquire farm land, and theft of property,” Kemp said in a statement. “We are tackling these challenges head on, and I want to thank our legislative partners for their work on these important issues.”

One of the measures, SB 494, “makes changes to the framework for hemp regulation in Georgia to allow the Georgia Department of Agriculture (GDA) to have greater oversight and enforcement power and adds labeling, packaging, and marketing requirements to protect children from misleading and dangerous marketing,” according to the governor’s office.

Specifically, the bill “establishes licensing requirements for growing hemp as well as manufacturing and selling low-THC hemp products,” and “also limits the possession and sale of hemp products to adults at least 21 years of age,” according to the Capitol Beat News Service.

The outlet described hemp farming in Georgia as “a fast-growing industry.”

“The vast majority of the jobs and the vast majority of the investment that have been created by these great private-sector companies … have been located outside the metro-Atlanta counties, creating opportunities for Georgians to succeed no matter what their zip code,” Kemp said at signing ceremony on Tuesday, as quoted by Capitol Beat News Service.

Like many other states, Georgia took the step to legalize hemp farming following the passage of the 2018 Farm Bill, which made hemp-derived products legal under federal law.

Recreational cannabis remains illegal in the Peach State, but lawmakers there legalized medical cannabis treatment in 2015 with the passage of Haleigh’s Hope Act, which permitted eligible patients access to low-THC cannabis oil.

In 2019, the Georgia General Assembly passed another measure that authorized “the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission to oversee the regulated licensing of limited, in-state cultivation, production, manufacturing, and sale of low-THC oil as well as dispensing to registered patients on the state’s Low-THC Oil Registry,” according to the state Access to Medical Cannabis Commission’s official website.

That bill was signed into law by Kemp.

The governor’s office said that although the package of bills signed into law on Tuesday “primarily focused on agriculture-related issues, it also addresses career burnout among healthcare professionals and goes after those who are distributing fentanyl-laced medications or controlled substances.”

SB 465, for example, “targets those involved in distributing fentanyl-laced medications to unknowing consumers by creating the offense of aggravated involuntary manslaughter for persons who manufacture or sell an apparent controlled substance that contains fentanyl and cause the fentanyl overdose death of another,” and “also establishes a criminal penalty for unregulated persons to possess a pill press, tableting machine, encapsulating machine, or other materials used to manufacture controlled or counterfeit substances.”

SB 420 “prohibits the ownership or acquisition of agricultural land or non-residential land within a radius of a military location by a nonresident alien acting as an agent of a government designated as a foreign adversary, entity domiciled/majorly owned in certain countries, or governments of countries designated as a foreign adversary by the U.S. Secretary of Commerce,” while SB 340 “adds diesel exhaust fluid (for agricultural uses only) to the Georgia Agricultural Tax Exemption (GATE) – alleviating high input costs for our farmers and ranchers.”

HB 455 “requires that professional programs established to address career fatigue and wellness in healthcare professionals are not obligated to report information on individual cases to the respective licensing boards unless they are determined to not be competent to continue to practice or are a danger to themselves or others,” while HB 1335 “adjusts staffing requirements in personal care homes, assisted living communities, and memory care centers by ensuring that no fewer than two on-site direct care staff are present on the premise at all times with at least one staff person on each floor. If the personal care home has implemented a medical alert system and each resident is provided a wearable device that connects to such system, then the staff person may move about the premises as necessary.”

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Prison walls do little when drones can easily deliver drugs and other contraband to prisoners, and the tactic appears at prisons all across the country. Georgia Gov. Brian P. Kemp announced last week that 150 individuals were arrested in a drone drug delivery operation that served inmates in Georgia correctional facilities as law enforcement confiscated 67 pounds of pot and various other drugs.

“Operation Skyhawk” was a joint investigative effort between the Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation Safe Streets Gang Task Force. Eight dirty GDC correctional officers who allegedly took part in the operation were also arrested and immediately terminated from their positions.

NBC News reports that items that have been confiscated thus far during the operation include a full range of illegal drugs, with a total combined street value of over $7 million. This includes 87 drones, 22 weapons, 273 cell phones (which are banned in the prisons), 180 civilian cell phones, 185 pounds of tobacco, 67 pounds of pot, 12 pounds of meth, 51 pounds of ecstasy, 10 grams of cocaine, and 90 various pills. Photos of the confiscated drugs and weapons, including Wonka-branded products, were also released. Three large vacuum-sealed bags of flower can also be seen in the photos.

The governor announced the arrests in a March 28 press release. Search and arrest warrants were served at two locations in the Metro Atlanta area—taking down a “sophisticated, multi-state criminal enterprise that included civilians, inmates, and staff involved in contraband introduction into GDC facilities.”

“Georgia will not tolerate those who put our communities at risk by trafficking drugs, weapons, and contraband both in and out of our correctional facilities,” said Kemp. “I want to thank Commissioner Oliver, the hardworking men and women of the GDC, and all law enforcement who worked to shut these operations down and help keep both Georgians and our correctional facilities safe.”

“Operation Skyhawk” led to over 1,000 criminal charges stemming from contraband introduction, drug trafficking, and felons in possession of firearms. 

The governor also announced that many of the individuals arrested will also be facing Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO) charges and Participation in Criminal Gang Activity in multiple venues across the state, resulting in what may be the largest Gang RICO investigation in the state’s history.

Law enforcement officers warned that many other states may also be affected by the same criminal enterprise.

Prison Drone Delivery

Drone deliveries in California and Kansas recently led to a total of 10 indictments. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, Eastern District of California posted a press release on Thursday, announcing that four defendants have been indicted in schemes to deliver drugs into prisons via drone.

In that case, drones delivered not only weed, but spice/K2 drugs that mimic weed, butane oil, and an assortment of other drugs and contraband items. If convicted of conspiracy charges, the defendants face a maximum statutory penalty of 10 years to life in prison and fines of up to $10 million. If convicted of possession with intent to distribute drugs, the defendants face a statutory penalty of five to 40 years in prison and a fine of up to $5 million.

Meanwhile, another team of criminals allegedly used drones to deliver drugs into the U.S. Penitentiary in Leavenworth, Kansas.  Between August 2020 and May 2021, drugs on demand were available, and inmates into the prison yard could order specific drugs.

Last September, an Australian woman and two accomplices pleaded guilty in court to using a drone in an attempt to traffic multiple different drugs and a USB stick filled with pornography into a Queensland, Australia prison yard.

In that case, 27-year-old Cheyenne Anniki Petryszyn was on parole when a drone containing Buprenorphine strips, methamphetamine, and a USB thumb drive containing pornography was found in an exercise yard where it crash-landed.

Prison staff said they found a drone on the ground near a baggie containing 79 strips of Buprenorphine which is a drug used to treat opioid dependence, 0.94 grams of meth, and the USB drive containing an undisclosed amount of pornographic material. 

Law enforcement is also using drones to spot cannabis operations—particularly in California. A pilot program involving the use of drones to spot illegal cannabis grow operations took place in 2021 in Nevada County, California.

In many areas in California, growers have the challenge of competing with illicit operations amid an epic oversupply problem—driving some operators into the black market. 

Also in 2021, a House appropriations committee backed federal efforts to track down illicit grow operations on public lands in California. If issues around cybersecurity and domestic production can be resolved so that drones can be fully trusted, it could become a reality in more areas. 

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Wiz Khalifa, Gucci Mane, and our own senior editor David Downs are in the mix this 420.

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On Feb. 6, a lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court in Georgia by resident Hannah Ledbetter against 12 cannabis companies. The claim alleges that all of the companies mentioned have sold cannabis products as delta hemp products instead of cannabis products and is asking for a total of $150 million. The companies listed include STIIIZY, LLC; Cookies Creative Consulting and Promotions; Cloud 9 Online Smoke & Vape, LLC; Green Rush LLC dba Xhale City; TheSY LLC dba Element Vape; Savage Enterprises; Delta Extrax; L&K Distribution; Columbia Laboratories; PharmLabs; Encore; and Pur ISO Labs LLC.

The plaintiff claims she was deceived by the companies into buying federally illegal products that were being sold as federally legal hemp products (with 0.9% THC or less). “Defendants have conspired to import, manufacture, distribute, and possess illegal (delta-8) THC vape pens that are marijuana,” the lawsuit stated. “This scheme could only be accomplished through a pattern of racketeering activity.”

According to Justia, a “racket” refers to a single fraudulent service, while “racketeering” defines multiple illegal activities, usually done collaboratively through a group via organized crime. The Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations (RICO) Act describes racketeering activity with crimes such as fraudulent offenses, murder, kidnapping, drug trafficking, bribery, and more. 

Ledbetter purchased delta-9 THC products from Cloud 9, Element, Xhale City and/or Xhale Franchise locations in and near Atlanta, Georgia. She alleges that the products contained far more than what is legally acceptable by law. The lawsuit claims that all cannabis companies named “have facilitated the manufacturing, distribution, and/or sale of illegal marijuana to thousands of people over the course of the last four years.”

Ultimately, the lawsuit summarizes its accusation. “In essence, [customers of the defendants] are paying for legal hemp-derived THC but are receiving illegal marijuana, which has created millions of dollars of fraudulent profit,” it stated.

Ledbetter’s team is accusing the defendants of finding third party testing labs Columbia Laboratories in Oregon, and Encore and Pharmalabs SD in California, that would issue false certificates of analysis for the five products. Results showed that “the hemp-derived D9 variance levels that was in excess of the legal limit” included hemp-based vape pens with the following strains: Cookies’ Huckleberry “Gelaot” (assumedly Gelato but there is a typo in the lawsuit text), Extrax’s Forbidden Jelly and Power Plant, Looper’s Blue Gusherz, and STIIIZY Hemp’s OG Kush.

“To facilitate this fraud, the Lab Defendants knowingly created false test results that were advertised over the internet hundreds of times for publication and marketing through the wires, and such activity is wire fraud,” the lawsuit continued.

According to an article published by Green Market Report, a STIIIZY spokesperson said in an email statement that the lawsuit “contains absolutely no factual evidence to support its conclusory and baseless claims against STIIIZY. We intend to defend ourselves vigorously against this meritless lawsuit and seek to have it dismissed since it has no factual basis.” At the time of publishing, Cookies and other defendants had not yet provided a statement.

The lawsuit calls on the court to determine it as a class action lawsuit, which must first be granted by a federal judge. RICO lawsuits state that plaintiffs are entitled to three times the listed damages, and this lawsuit requests $50 million for damages, referencing “treble” damages, which means that a successful lawsuit could lead to the plaintiff receiving up to $150 million.

A similar lawsuit was filed in California last summer between the state of California and nine individual cannabis companies based in California, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, or Wyoming. The lawsuit claimed that cannabis products should include a Proposition 65 warning label on delta-9 THC cannabis products, because it is “known to cause harm to the developing fetus.”

According to California Attorney General Rob Bonta, the potential dangers of illegal hemp products should be addressed. “I want to be clear: The sales of industrial hemp products that do not comply with California law, and the illegal sale of inhalable hemp in California will not be tolerated,” said Bonta. “The dangers of these products must be communicated for sale to the public, and the sale of all industrial hemp inhalable products must cease altogether. The California Department of Justice will continue to protect the legitimate businesses who are operating responsibly in this space. There is no room for illegal inhalable hemp products in our state.”

The rise in hemp-derived cannabis products began after the 2018 Farm Bill was passed. It authorized the use and sale of hemp-based products, mainly CBD. Since then, many state legislators have introduced bills to regulate such products. One of the latest examples of this was seen in Missouri last December, when Sen. Nick Schroer introduced Senate Bill 984, also titled the “Intoxicating Cannabinoid Control Act.” If passed, the bill would regulate delta-8 THC products as cannabis, not hemp. The most current action for SB-984 includes Senate Judiciary and Civil and Criminal Jurisprudence Committee hearing held on Feb. 12.

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On Feb. 17, 2023, a Georgia-based Black family of seven (two parents, Deonte Williams and Bianca Claymore and five children, one of which was an infant at the time) were driving to a funeral and traveling through Tennessee to Chicago, Illinois, when they were detained at a traffic stop. Law enforcement initially pulled them over for dark tinted windows and traveling in the left lane while not passing, but after finding five grams of cannabis in the pocket of the Williams, he was arrested, Clayborne was cited, and they spent four hours at the Coffee County Justice Center.

The children were terrified, and DCS caseworkers asked to obtain a urine sample from Clayborne, who refused because she didn’t want to leave her kids alone. They compromised to have her give a urine sample in her car, while surrounded by law enforcement, and she attempted to do so, but ultimately could not. DCS told her that not complying “made matters worse” for her, and an emergency order from Coffee County Judge Greg Perry was issued for the children; they were removed from Bianca’s side at the justice center and taken into state custody.

The children were placed in temporary separate foster homes, where Clayborne was not allowed to visit them, and later they were allowed to stay with a family friend while the case was ongoing. Finally, after 55 days of separation, the children were returned to their parents on April 13. Clayborne’s misdemeanor was dismissed, Williams pled guilty to a misdemeanor, and the Department of Children’s Services dismissed the case.

According to the Tennessee Lookout, the sudden separation caused Clayborne to suffer from intense anxiety, depression, and mental anguish, and she stopped producing breast milk during that time. The news report shared that the children have also shown signs of trauma because of the incident, including one child having nightmares, wetting the bed, and another child now “has a visceral reaction to seeing police.”

Nearly one year later on Feb. 8, the family is suing the three DCS caseworkers, four Tennessee Highway Patrol officers, 10 Coffee County Sheriff Department officers, all of which played a part in the incident. “These public officials illegally tore apart and terrorized Clayborne’s family. They acted outrageously and unlawfully. Their actions caused severe emotional trauma to Clayborne and each of her five children,” the lawsuit stated. “Clayborne and the children bring this lawsuit to vindicate their rights against people that harmed them, though the full extent of the harm to their family may never be undone.”

The lawsuit claims that the family’s fourth amendment rights were violated, that there is evidence of multiple counts of false arrest and imprisonment, in addition to many other counts. The family is represented by Herzfeld, Suetholz, Gastel, Leniski, and Wall, PLLC, and Rubenfeld Law Office, PC.

Last year, Williams’ and Claymore’s attorney, Jamaal Boykin, expressed the sheer horror of such an event taking place. “It’s just so shocking to the conscience that in 2023 this is happening,” said Boykin. “I just have to believe if my clients looked different or had a different background, they would have just been given a citation and told you just keep this stuff away from the kids while you’re in this state and they’d be on their way.”

Legislators who heard about the incident also stood up for the family, such as Tennessee Sen. London Lamar. “DCS, Coffee County, y’all need to do the right thing before the situation gets worse, and we have a nation of people coming to the rescue of this Black family,” said Lamar. “Give them their children back. It’s borderline discrimination, because if this was any other family, as their attorney said, we don’t even think this would be the outcome.”

Tennessee Sen. Raumesh Akbari also exclaimed her disappointment in the events that tore the family apart. “It is outrageous that the state forcefully separated Bianca Clayborne, a breastfeeding mother, and Deonte Williams from their kids and have allowed this to continue for nearly a month,” Akbari said. “The state exercised extreme and flawed judgment in taking their children and it seems they’ve doubled down on this poor decision. No family is perfect, but an imperfection, like a simple marijuana charge, is no excuse for tearing a family apart. The state is supposed to support reunification. If they don’t have a better reason, they must immediately return these five children to their parents.”

Cannabis laws in Tennessee are incredibly strict, even for the limited number of patients who are permitted to use medical cannabis as residents. In the 2022 State of the States Report written by Americans for Safe Access, Tennessee received an “F” grade for its medical cannabis program. “Tennessee policymakers should avoid delaying implementation of a medical cannabis program; patients in the state are actively harmed by the state’s inaction,” the ASA wrote. Other states with an “F” rating included Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Mississippi, Nebraska, North Carolina, South Carolina, Texas, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.

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Federal law enforcement agents sent a warning letter dated Nov. 27 to pharmacies across Georgia, warning them that dispensing and selling cannabis oil is illegal under federal law. The letter arrived a month into Georgia’s medical cannabis program.

Last June, Georgia’s Board of Pharmacy released a set of regulations that enable the state’s independent pharmacies to dispense cannabis oil to eligible patients enrolled in a registry maintained by the state Department of Public Health. Beginning last Oct. 27, Georgia is the first state in the U.S. to permit independent pharmacies to sell low-THC oil. The move made it legal for over 400 independent pharmacies in Georgia to apply for the program and dispense cannabis oil. Over 100 have applied for the program so far.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) warned them that dispensing THC is illegal because it remains a Schedule I drug. 

“All DEA registrants, including DEA-registered pharmacies, are required to abide by all relevant federal laws and regulations,” reads a letter sent to a Georgia pharmacy by Matthew J. Strait, a DEA deputy assistant administrator in the agency’s Diversion Control Division. “A DEA-registered pharmacy may only dispense controlled substances in Schedules II-V of the Controlled Substances Act. Neither marijuana nor THC can lawfully be possessed, handled, or dispensed by any DEA-registered pharmacy.”

Keep in mind that things could change soon on the federal level: The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) sent an Aug. 19 letter, recommending to the DEA that cannabis be rescheduled and moved to the Schedule III drug category, making the substance legally accessible through a prescription at the federal level, which would make it legal in Georgia pharmacies. Last October, President Joe Biden requested that the HHS secretary and attorney general conduct a review of the classification of cannabis under federal law, and they did so.

“No one should be in jail just for using or possessing marijuana,” Biden said Oct. 6.

Since Georgia only allows low-THC and CBD cannabis products, it’s unlikely people seeking a high are going to go through its medical program.

Anti-Cannabis Reform Orgs Rejoice

Smart Approaches to Marijuana (SAM) celebrated the blow to medical cannabis patients in a news release, posting the memo on their website. Opponents said Georgia’s program that supplies low-THC cannabis oil to patients “flies in the face of the position of every major medical association.”

NORML explains that Georgia’s low-THC medical cannabis law only allows for cannabis oils containing not more than 5% THC and an amount of CBD equal to or greater than the amount of THC. Today strains of cannabis in other states can exceed 30% THC. And then in Georgia, it has to be stored in a pharmaceutical container labeled by the manufacturer indicating the percentage of THC.

“The Georgia Pharmacy Board’s move to allow the sale of THC oils over the counter in drugstores is a disaster for public health because it implies an FDA endorsement of these dangerous, psychoactive products that can have very serious consequences for users, especially young people,” said SAM President Kevin Sabet. “The DEA’s repudiation of this policy is good news for consumers, and I applaud their affirming the federal government’s position that marijuana is not medicine. 

“As we’ve stated clearly throughout this debate, THC drugs are not medicine and federal law makes clear sales of marijuana and non-prescription THC drugs are illegal.The Board’s decision to allow pharmacies to dispense unregulated THC oils flies in the face of the position of every major medical association, Surgeons General appointed by both parties, the FDA, and the DEA. 

“Unlike with prescription medications, there is no legitimate dosing regimen or other quality control mechanism in place for these drugs. THC oils are often so high in potency that any level of consumption could be dangerous to physical and mental health. Pharmacies found to be violating federal law should be shut down immediately and face the harshest penalties under the law.”

Georgia’s own anti-cannabis reform organization, Georgians for Responsible Marijuana Policy, also responded. 

“I imagine, in the short term, the pharmacies who started dispensing medical marijuana would have to stop or risk a confrontation with the DEA,” Michael Mumper of Georgians for Responsible Marijuana Policy told 11Alive. “You know, there’s always been that tension between marijuana being illegal at the national level, while 38 states have approved it for medical reasons and 24 now for recreational reasons. There was always that tension about where is the federal government going to draw the line. Where Georgia went the furthest is that they were the first state in the country to have pharmacies dispense medical marijuana. And so I think they just pushed the DEA to a certain point.”

But Georgia’s pharmacies supply patients, often who have run out of options.

“We believe that this is an important thing,” Ira Katz of Little Five Points Pharmacy in Atlanta told 11Alive a month ago, “because who better than your independent pharmacist, who knows your history and knows your medical history, is able to best dispense medical marijuana?”

It’s unlikely Georgia pharmacies will be able to continue dispensing cannabis oil as-is.

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Friday, Oct. 27 was a historic day for cannabis in Georgia and throughout the country, as it was the first day that pharmacists were legally allowed to sell cannabis at the pharmacy counter.

Dr. Ankit Patel was the first pharmacist to begin selling cannabis at his pharmacy, Robins Pharmacy. “It’s awesome. It’s historic,” Patel told CNN. “I’ve been following the laws in Georgia about passing it, and I’ve been excited about this possibility for about four years now. When they finally said independent pharmacies will be able to carry it, I filled out the license form immediately. I knew I had to get this.”

So far, Robins Pharmacy (located in the city of Warner Robins) as well as Omega Pharmacy and Allen Pharmacy Group, were among the first to receive a state license for selling low-THC medical cannabis products, which is defined as less than 5% THC. According to People, there are more than 400 independent pharmacies in Georgia that could apply to be a part of the program.

In order to obtain approval from the state, pharmacies must receive an inspection from the Georgia Drugs and Narcotics Agency, where they examine the pharmacy’s security and interview staff about proper product knowledge and handling.

State law dictates that cannabis products must be kept on shelves along with other prescription medicines, according to Allen Pharmacy Group owner Bill Posey. “Just like all other ‘dangerous’ drugs,” Posey said. “Blood pressure medicine is also considered a ‘dangerous’ drug in this circumstance. Everyday we sell drugs that I would consider more dangerous than medical cannabis.”

Posey’s pharmacy began selling cannabis as of Monday, Oct. 30. “We have already had someone calling, wanting to know when they can come in and make a purchase, so I know there’s a need,” Posey said ahead of the starting sale date.

Posey told CNN that cannabis is a useful replacement for opioids, but the state allows a total of 18 conditions that qualify patients for medical cannabis. This includes patients with severe, terminal, or end stage conditions associated with cancer, Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, seizure disorders or trauma head injuries, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, mitochondrial disease, Parkinson’s disease, sickle cell disease, Tourette’s syndrome, autism spectrum disorder, epidermolysis bullosa, Alzheimer’s disease, AIDS, peripheral neuropathy, hospice patients, intractable pain, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

Omega Pharmacy owner Dr. Jordan Day told CNN that her pharmacy will begin selling medical cannabis sometime this week. She also spoke about cannabis as a way to wean patients off of opioids. “We’ll be able to show them the products, hopefully give them a little bit of information, find out what they are wanting to use it for,” Day said, adding that medical cannabis could be useful for replacing general pain, sleep, and anxiety medication. “With the pharmacist and the doctor involved, that really is the best thing that the patient could have,” Day said.

Posey also explained that pharmacies like his own are independent, and he’s able to spend more time with patients that he’s served regularly for many years. “We don’t just give people medication and say, ‘OK, you’re done.’ We like to make sure that we always treat everyone who walks in like family,” Posey said.

Patel informed all of his pain patients the benefits of medical cannabis. “Right now, we’re going through an opioid shortage, and I talked to all my pain medicine patients about it, and I let them know that if this is something that they’re interested in, it’s legal in the state of Georgia,” Patel said. “You know, it’s much more natural, [a] less addicting option than opioids.” 

On Oct. 20, one week prior to the official launch date, Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Oil Commission chair Andrew Turnage said that this will increase accessibility for medical cannabis like never before. “It’s just a 15-to-20-minute drive from where patients are located across the state. That’s going to be so much easier for them to get access,” Turnage said.

Gov. Brian P. Kemp signed House Bill 324, also called “Georgia’s Hope Act,” in April 2019, and it took effect starting in July 2019. “Over the years, I’ve met with children who are battling chronic, debilitating diseases. I’ve heard from parents who are struggling with access and losing hope,” Kemp said in April 2019. “This compromise legislation is carefully crafted to provide access to medical cannabis oil to those in need. This is simply the right thing to do.”

The law directs control of cannabis license regulation, cultivation, production, manufacturing, and sales of low-THC oil to the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission. In November of 2019, seven members of the commission were appointed. However, it wasn’t until July 2021 when the state revamped its original medical cannabis program and the commission approved six companies to sell cannabis.

Earlier this month, Georgia officials reported that its medical cannabis patient number has been updated and is much less than previously thought. Originally, they believed there were more than 50,000 patients, when in reality there are roughly 14,000, which was due to “anomalies” such as the system not updating when patient cards expired or patients passed away after 2015.

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The Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) announced on Sept. 27 that its previously recorded data regarding the number of medical cannabis patients is actually less than expected.

The state found “anomalies” that inflated its patient and caregiver numbers, which originally was projected to be about 50,000 patients. This number was still taking into account patients whose cards have expired or those who have passed away since 2015, and now a more accurate 14,000 reflects the true patient count, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

DPH spokesperson Nancy Nydam further explained the cause of inflated numbers.

“DPH identified a number of anomalies within the registry data including patients with duplicate cards, patients who were counted as caregivers, expired cards that had not been renewed but remained in the system, and some patients who were deceased.”

The reason that this wasn’t discovered sooner is because this year, Georgia opened its first medical cannabis dispensaries. Two Trulieve dispensaries opened in late April, and there are now a total of six operating dispensaries.

Nydam added that DPH Commissioner Kathleen Toomey has since ordered an audit of the medical cannabis registry.

A brief review of the Low THC Oil Registry requires medical providers to remove patients once they stop receiving care, or pass away. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes that reporting this ceased after 2019 and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and there is no automated system to keep track of the patient or caregiver count.

Georgia’s medical cannabis program started in 2015 with “Haleigh’s Hope Act.” It permitted the use of medical cannabis to treat conditions such as end-stage cancer, Lou Gehrig’s Disease, seizure disorders, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, mitochondrial disease, Parkinson’s disease, and sickle cell disease. However, it didn’t implement any kind of protection for the patient, especially in expecting an employer to accommodate medical cannabis consumption.

Patients must receive approval from a physician in order to treat these medical conditions, and only have access to oil that contains no more than 5% THC. Cards only cost $25 for two years.

Botanical Sciences CEO Gary Long, head of one of the medical cannabis dispensaries in Georgia, explained his frustration for the inaccurate numbers. “It is disappointing to find out that the information the state has provided is inaccurate,” Long told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “Our focus should be on how we move past this in a cohesive way that increases awareness of this industry in our state and the availability of these therapeutic products for patients in need.”

In July, the DPH reported 30,600 active patients, when there are actually only 13,000. For caregivers who may legally obtain cannabis for a patient, there were an estimated 21,000. Now, the number has decreased to only 1,200. Additionally, an estimated 3,400 patients have passed away out of the 17,600 patients whose cards expired or were canceled.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that the DPH has made similar data collecting mistakes in regards to COVID-19 numbers. The news outlet pointed out how the list of children who died from COVID was incomplete and that drive-up testing sites weren’t recording accurate race data.

For cannabis though, the patient numbers have risen over the past few months now that medical cannabis dispensaries have begun operation. However, updated numbers won’t be provided by the DPH until the audit is complete.

Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission Andrew Turnage commented on the rising number of patients. “The demand is certainly there for patients in need,” said Andrew Turnage, executive director for the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission. “We know there are a significant number of patients in Georgia with the appropriate and applicable diagnosis, but the registry growth is happening slower than anticipated.”

In the future, the DPH has already begun to fix the issue of deceased patients being counted as cardholders. Now the DPH also plans to analyze its data twice a year to remove expired cards, and no longer need it to be done by medical providers.

In August, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that there’s a backlog of 558 medical cannabis applications waiting to be verified. One Georgia mother, Kim Srkiba, uses cannabis to treat her 24-year-old son’s seizures. She told the outlet that she applied for the card in April and didn’t get approval for more than four months. “I’ve been trying to skimp on it so that it would last. We’ve had a little bit of an increase in seizures, so that’s awful,” explained Skriba. “Life with a special needs child or adult is not easy. When the state makes things harder for you, it just adds difficulty and stress to the whole situation.”

At the time, DPH interim director of health protection Chris Rustin, expressed a need to expedite the process. “We had to make it much more convenient for the public to have access to pick up these cards,” Rustin said. “These improvements will certainly help us improve the process and issue these cards quicker for the public that needs it.”

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