Letter to the Editor: Senator encourages Carney to veto marijuana legislation – Medical Marijuana Program Connection

Editor’s note: The following was sent to Gov. John Carney on March 30.

I am writing to urge you to veto House Bill 1 and House Bill 2, the marijuana bills. Last year, you showed great leadership and courage to veto similar bills. The dangers associated with legalization of recreational marijuana were ignored by those who voted for the bills. But the dangers are real. Here are a few of them:

As of mid-August of last year, there were already 63 near-deaths and six deaths of children in Delaware. In 2021, there were 70 cases for the entire year, a 35% increase over the previous year.

According to reports from Texas, one of the few states to provide detailed information on drug use by perpetrators, cannabis is associated with a disturbing number of child deaths from abuse and neglect, many more than alcohol and other drug use combined.

Is this a factor in Delaware, where we allow medical marijuana use and illegal drug use is known to be widespread? Very likely.

According to a study reported by the National Institute on Drug Abuse, employees who tested positive for marijuana had 55% more industrial accidents, 85% more injuries and 75% greater absenteeism compared to those who tested negative. Also impacting the bottom line is decreased productivity.

The THC in…