The Drug Enforcement Agency is cracking down on the illicit use of a drug to treat opioid use disorder, but this policy may be fueling the opioid crisis. But because the drug, buprenorphine, is a controlled substance—used to treat cravings during withdrawal—can be misused, the DEA has taken an aggressive stance to stop its diversion to the streets. This often means stopping pharmacies from dispensing the drug when it’s desperately needed amid record drug overdose deaths. The ramifications are particularly acute in rural areas, where there is a lack of treatment providers and a stigma against these medications that already create barriers. Pharmacies are therefore reluctant to both order and distribute the drugs, fearing that the DEA will revoke their license.
Meanwhile, a new study published by the American Heart Association found that a growing number of people under 50 diagnosed with cannabis use disorder were later hospitalized for a heart attack. The rising trend parallels the legalization of marijuana in many states and adds to the growing body of evidence concerning the potential risks of cannabis use. The finding was most pronounced in those 18 to 32, among men, and African Americans, among the nearly 900,000 medical records analyzed. The study revealed that the proportion of patients hospitalized for heart attacks who had CUD nearly tripled to 6.7 percent between 2007 to 2018. The study was observational and did not control for use of other substances such as tobacco or alcohol, and therefore did not show a direct cause, suggesting that long-term studies are needed to determine the link between cannabis and heart disease.
And finally, cannabis stocks were once flying high, after Canada legalized the drug and more states in the U.S. approved both medical and recreational sales, and revenues boomed. But now, investors have a bad hangover, Politico reports, because the Biden administration and Congress have done nothing to ease restrictions on cannabis companies accessing financial markets, or move to end federal prohibition of pot. The result: plummeting stock prices and nervous investors who sank billions into the fledgling industry, hoping for a big payoff. At the same time, big pot states like California say sales are declining after a pandemic surge, the illicit market is still large, and promises of achieving social equity as a result of legalization have not been realized.