Page 42 - Occupational Health & Safety, February 2017

DRUG TESTING
Legalized Marijuana—The Popular Perspective
As a safety manager, an HR director, or a company executive, remaining confused and silent toward the issue of legal marijuana may prove to be a very costly mistake for you and your company. BY NINA M. FRENCH
Arecent Gallop poll from October 2016 showed support for legalized marijuana increase to nearly 60 percent in the United
the market, why have they sidestepped the safety proto- cols set in place by the FDA, DEA, and Congress?
Perhaps the answer is that the push for medical marijuana has been a veiled attempt to bring mari- juana to market in general. If marijuana is not strict- ly medicinal, then it really must fall into one of two other groups: dietary supplements and herbal rem- edies or recreational. At that point, it must follow the path of supplements, herbal remedies, or alcohol in the United States.
Unlike prescriptions and OTC drugs, the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994 put supplements in the same category as food and therefore under different regulations than drugs. DSHEA requires that dietary supplements must not pose “a significant or unreasonable risk of illness or injury when used as directed on the label or with normal use if there are no directions on the label.” A manufacturer must provide the FDA with reasonable evidence that any new supplement or single ingredi- ent sold before 1994 is safe before it is marketed to the public.2 So although manufacturers of dietary supple- ments are not required to test in clinical trials, the FDA has the authority to ban supplements that have been proven to pose a significant health risk after they have caused harm to Americans. Yet, there is no re- quirement for health care providers or consumers to report adverse effects, which leaves the window wide open for consumers to experience serious and/or fatal risks without the FDA becoming aware of it.
So will marijuana be treated as a dietary supple- ment or an herbal remedy? As employers, taxpayers, and consumers, are we just waiting for the other shoe to drop and the costs of harm to start piling up?
OK. Let’s back up for a minute. Skip legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes and supplemental benefits and call it recreational. The 21st Amendment gives states the right to allow the manufacture and sale of alcohol in the state, govern imports and exports of alcohol, control distribution, and monitor and enforce possession. The Federal Alcohol Administration Act sets the labeling and advertising rules and prevents consumers from being deceived by misleading state- ments as to the quality and identity of the product. So why not apply the same kind of regulations to mari- juana? Following equivalent standards, producers of marijuana products would be required to comply with state laws concerning imports, exports, distri- bution, monitoring, and enforcement. They would
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States. Approval is not just coming from
Millennials; it crosses generations and location, from Baby Boomers through Generation X and from Mi- ami to Seattle. As popular support soars, the question remains: does everyone truly understand what they are supporting and why? And are they willing to pay the cost of that support?
After the November 2016 election, 28 states plus the District of Columbia have some form of legalized marijuana. Congress passed a ruling two years ago barring the Department of Justice from putting fed- eral funds toward obstructing medical marijuana op- erations in states with legal markets for the drug. New legislation has already been introduced in 2017 to ex- tend these provisions. In contrast, the federal govern- ment upheld the drug’s classification as a Schedule I controlled substance in the United States, keeping it illegal for any doctor to prescribe marijuana.
Overwhelmed or confused? It is nearly impossible not to be. As an employer, that may cost you millions.
To Market, to Market...
In the United States, prescription and over-the- counter (OTC) drugs are considered unsafe until proven safe. Safety is demonstrated through a series of stringent clinical trials, and before the FDA will approve a drug to be legally sold, it must show “sub- stantial evidence” that it is both safe and effective for each of its intended uses. Once the FDA approves the drug, it must be manufactured under close scrutiny, packaged with best dosage recommendations, and be labeled to include the conditions the drug has been proven to treat, the known side effects, any con- traindications or special conditions where using the drug would pose too much risk, and unsafe interac- tions with other drugs. Simply stated, it is a complex and arduous process.
So is marijuana truly being marketed for medici- nal purposes? And if so, why has it not been required to maintain the same safety standards as other drugs? Proponents will argue that it is because the government has not allowed enough marijuana to be legally grown to test. Yet, there is little effort and legislation to force production so manufacturers can perform testing for stringent clinical trials. If producers are truly concerned with providing safe, affordable alternative medicine to
38 Occupational Health & Safety | FEBRUARY 2017
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