Cannabidiol, or CBD for short, has been getting a lot of buzz these days. Everywhere you look there are pro-cannabis ads, articles about the benefits of CBD oil, and even some products that contain CBD as an ingredient in their formulas. It’s safe to say that everyone is talking about it today. But there is one place where people are not talking about medical marijuana: Michigan class a growers license.
Michigan has passed a law making it legal for medical marijuana to be used by qualified patients with a prescription in 2018.
1. CBD is illegal in Michigan.
Conclusions: The CBD Extract Bill (HB4205) was an effort to establish a clear and understandable way for patients to get their medicine. The bill got bogged down in potential tax revenues involved, which completely muddied the water. In November 2018, the bill didn’t even receive a vote from the Michigan House of Representatives.
However, several cases have made it through the court system which are set to be argued at the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals on April 16th, 2019. This may be a game-changer when it comes to CBD legality in Michigan.
2. CBD can only be used for treating cancer and epilepsy.
Conclusions: Medical marijuana law in Michigan was actually passed in 2008, but was not made usable until the passage of the 2018 law. If a doctor recommends CBD oil to you, they are doing so under the state’s medical marijuana law. Whether or not they have been taught about CBD is another issue, which is what several organizations are trying to address these days (more on that below).
3. Michigan doctors are required to prescribe deadly opioids over medical cannabis
Conclusions: This is completely false, and demonstrates a lack of knowledge about how medical marijuana works. The only time a doctor will recommend something other than cannabis is if the patient is allergic to THC, or has a history of substance abuse.
4. CBD with THC is illegal in Michigan.
Conclusions: This is not entirely true. The 2018 law does make it clear that patients can use cannabis for their condition, and that includes CBD oil with THC in it. It does not say anything about CBD being illegal on its own, which leaves it open to interpretation by the courts.
5. CBD oil is legal in all 50 states and has no negative side effects.
Conclusions: Research on the safety of CBD oil is still being conducted, and the findings are not conclusive. There have been several cases in which pets have accidentally ingested CBD oils, leading to death. It is also not legal in all 50 states; CBD only became legal on a federal level in December 2018 when President Trump signed the Farm Bill into law, which legalized hemp-derived CBD products.
6. You cannot be charged with a crime for using CBD oil.
Conclusions: You are only protected when it comes to using medical marijuana as a patient. If you drive under the influence or get into a fight in an attempt to aggress someone, you could be arrested and tried for those acts, just like any other time.
7. CBD is legal because there are no THC levels listed on the label.
Conclusions: There is still THC in these products, usually at extremely low levels that cannot be measured by standard drug tests. The FDA allows manufacturers of CBD products to use any amount of THC they want in their items, as long as they print “contains less than 0.3% THC” on the label.
8. There is no difference between CBD and THC.
Conclusions: The only way to produce medical marijuana is to grow the plant. THC and CBD are found in cannabis, but at different levels depending on the strain of the plant.
9. CBD can make you fail a drug test.
Conclusions: Some CBD products may cause a false-positive result when tested, similar to when someone uses poppy seeds or taking any other kind of medicine that contains codeine. If you are doing drug tests for your employer or school, it is best to check with them first before using CBD products.
10. You have to have cancer or epilepsy in order to buy medical marijuana in Michigan
Conclusions: The 2018 law really just relieves patients of the requirement to get approval from a doctor. Any other condition that can be proven with proper documentation is also eligible for medical marijuana.
11. You cannot get arrested for helping someone use medical marijuana.
Conclusions: There are many cases of people getting arrested for possessing and distributing medical marijuana, including growers and dispensaries.
Summary:
Cannabis is a plant that has been used for thousands of years, and although its documented health benefits are vast, there are still many questions we don’t have the answers to. That includes the medical use of cannabis in Michigan .
Is it safe to use? What about long-term side effects? The research is yet to be done. It’s also not safe for minors to use cannabis , so until these questions are answered by credible parties, you should be careful with your choices as a patient or as a caregiver.
The state of Michigan only recently approved the legalization of medical marijuana, but there’s still plenty more work being done to educate both doctors and patients on the latest information available on cannabis.
