The consequences of the legalization of marijuana
Supporters of legalizing marijuana failed to foresee the numerous retail forefronts and outlets that would proliferate across the jurisdictions. Additionally, the supporters were unable to contemplate how dispensaries would engage in new business practices in the market, like batter competitors for new clients using diverse and creative marketing strategies. None of the supporters thought about the use of billboards, hawking of the product, and other marketing approaches that would be adopted. Lastly, the supporters failed to foresee how the legalization would affect law and criminal enforcement. This paper intends to highlight some of the consequences of legalizing marijuana.
First, in terms of the distribution of the users’ age, initially, the supporters of this legalization did so in sympathy with patients suffering from chronic illnesses, particularly those that were forty years and older. However, later records seized from numerous dispensaries showed that the people who received prescriptions to use marijuana were mostly younger people found between 17 and 40 years old. The age distribution suggested that the consumption of marijuana by this age distribution mainly were for recreational purposes among the young people rather than for the older patients.
Further, the legalization of marijuana was because its supporters wanted it to be used to treat specific conditions and illnesses in patients. However, in a similar way to age distribution, the diseases or conditions identified by patients for using marijuana differed from the expected set conditions. While a small number of the users consumed the drug for the expected reasons, a large population of the users did not consume marijuana to treat severe conditions or illnesses like HIV/AIDS and cancer. Instead, most acquired the prescription for acute pain, a condition which is difficult to diagnose, confirm, or treat. It is not easy to quantify the severity of pain and determine whether or not it is a severe health condition prompting the prescription of marijuana. As a result, its prescription happened when a patient claimed without proof that he/she is suffering from pain, and the physician accepted and gave a prescription.
The legalization of marijuana led to patient and physician distribution of the drug. Legislators initially believed that medical practitioners would behave and act ethically by carrying out diagnostic tests that are necessary and offering medical prescriptions and treatment based on the acceptable standards before dishing out medical marijuana. As a result, they failed to foresee the emergence of a different specialization where the practice of physicians would be within the domain of patients looking for marijuana. On the contrary, physicians did not assess patient history or conduct follow-ups to understand why and whether the drug is used for the right purposes. Instead, the physicians only engaged in the business of selling and seeking new clients. Some people under the pretense of suffering from chronic pain also acquired the drug for distribution and profit. Physicians even went further to locate their offices close to dispensaries, thereby indicating a bias in favor of granting recommendations for the use of marijuana.
The legalization of marijuana led to marketing and profit-making in unprecedented ways. This legalization led to increased use of the drug. This is thought to be the result of new forms of marketing and selling, including using storefronts sales. Voters in support of medical marijuana failed to foresee the proliferation of stores in cities selling the drug. Numerous dispensaries emerged to allow people to buy marijuana from friendly neighborhoods. Though this was quite expensive, it was much comfortable and convenient and guaranteed predictability and quality in terms of dosage. The only unexpected result in this establishment is the number of outlets that emerged. This number is linked to the ease of acquiring medical approvals and the ubiquitous and aggressive marketing strategies like the use of publications, stickers, leaflets, billboards, and flyers.
Lastly, one of the unexpected outcomes of legalizing marijuana was policing the drug. The inception of legalized medical marijuana led to new opportunities for people who were interested in growing the drug for profits. As a result, those who wanted to carry out illegal farming of marijuana for-profits acquired recommendations from doctors to grant them protection from the law. They could thus take part in the plant’s cultivation and selling without experiencing arrests or prosecution, especially after they obtained doctor’s recommendations for its use or being accorded a caregiver status. In a short period, many individuals who engaged in illegal farming of marijuana for profit did it under the cloak of medial legitimacy. Many sellers also purchased the drug from dispensaries obtained profit from recreational users. The medical recommendations paused a challenge for law enforcers who often find it difficult to determine genuine individuals using selling or using the drug for the right purposes. It has also been difficult or challenging for the police to determine forged or fake medical recommendations or find people with recommendations who are selling the drug to other unauthorized users due to the increased number of dispensaries that prescribe medical marijuana, as well as the number of people who have acquired doctors’ recommendations to use the drug.