Opinion/Kennedy: Decriminalize, don't normalize, use of marijuana

Patrick Kennedy, a former U.S. Representative from Rhode Island and member of the President’s Commission on Combating Drug Addiction and the Opioid Crisis, is on the advisory board of Smart Approaches to Marijuana. 

As a former U.S. Congressman who proudly represented the Ocean State’s First District for 16 years, and as a fierce advocate for those struggling with mental health and substance use conditions, I implore my peers in the legislature to proceed with caution and temperance. 

There are socially just reasons to end the criminalization of marijuana, and I fully support them. For many decades, the harm caused by the mass incarceration of people —particularly people of color — for possessing and selling marijuana for personal use has outweighed the harm caused by marijuana itself. Moreover, imposing such harsh criminal penalties has been ineffective in discouraging people from using it, as usage rates have continued to increase. 

Decriminalizing marijuana, however, shouldn’t mean destigmatizing or normalizing it. While many people can use marijuana without it leading to problematic behavior, those who have underlying or undiagnosed mental health challenges — especially young people in this category — will be at an increased risk of suffering severe impacts, sometimes with tragic outcomes. 

A  study from the United Kingdom showed that daily users of high-potency marijuana had nearly five times the chances of developing psychosis compared with those who had never used marijuana. And another study found that “Cannabis is involved in approximately 50% of psychosis, schizophrenia and schizophreniform psychosis cases.” 

Multiple studies have also shown that early and frequent marijuana use has been linked with major depressive disorders and suicidal behavior and thoughts. A 2005 study by the Washington University School of Medicine found that among twins in which one twin was dependent on marijuana and the other was not, the dependent twin was 2.9 times as likely as their non-dependent twin to have suicidal thoughts and 2.5 times as likely to attempt suicide. 

One reason why these health risks may not seem to align with marijuana’s “harmless” reputation is that the concentration of THC — the psychoactive ingredient in cannabis — is much higher today than it was decades ago. In the early 1970s, the average concentration of THC in the so-called “Woodstock weed” was about 3%. Today’s marijuana typically has 17.1%, and edibles have an average concentration of 55.7%. Many marijuana retailers even have products available with THC potency of 95-99%. Researchers have found that the use of marijuana with a THC potency of 15% or more increases the likelihood of addiction and psychosis. 

If Rhode Island were to legalize marijuana, it would essentially be acting as a partner in facilitating the growth of an addiction-for-profit industry for the purposes of reaping greater tax revenues. Are Rhode Islanders ready to look the other way amid the marketing of a product that will most certainly cause harm to many of its users?

I urge the state to see Big Marijuana for what it truly is, and instead be a strong regulator that prioritizes minimizing the recreational use of cannabis, educating the public about its harms, and expanding the availability of robust mental health and substance use resources.

We can’t absolve the guilt of a failed criminal justice policy by abdicating responsible public health policy.