Best of the Week: October 17 – October 23, 2025

Let’s dive into the top stories shaping the conversation this week. Summaries of each article are listed below.

1. New York OCM Issues Statewide Recall, Charges Omnium Health for Cannabis License Violations

The New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM) released a statement on October 20 declaring it had filed charges against cannabis processor and distributor Omnium Health (Omnium Canna) and had issued a statewide recall of associated products. OCM has issued a Notice of Pleading (NOP), claiming Omnium had enabled an operation allowing unlicensed businesses to use its processing and distribution license to produce and package cannabis to state retailers. It is also seeking penalties including the revoking of both processor and distributor licenses and ineligibility from future licenses.

2. SCOTUS to Rule on Cannabis Consumers' Gun Rights and Restrictions

The United States Supreme Court (SCOTUS) has announced that they are going to hear arguments from the Justice Department on a case that may determine if cannabis consumers are able to legally possess guns. The Justice Department has previously moved to appeal a 5th US Circuit Court of Appeals decision which deemed the blanket ban as being “unconstitutional.”

Members of the NORML Legal Committee, which includes attorneys David Holland, Nikki Fried, Greg Morse, and Joseph Bondy, said in an amicus brief regarding the case, “Neither the Founders, Framers, nor elected leaders of the United States, all of whom had intimate knowledge of the role of cannabis cultivation and consumption in the colonies and new nation, took any legislative action to disarm cannabis consumers of the right to bear arms.”

3. How THC and CBD Affect Driving Performance: Research Studies Discussed in Healer Webinar

Does cannabis impair driving performance? This month’s Healer webinar, hosted by hosted by Dustin Sulak, DO, included an analysis of three recently published studies on THC or CBD and the effects on simulated driving tests. Dr. Sulak noted that these studies did not focus on the effect of cannabis on driving performance in medical cannabis users.

Read additional studies on Tourette syndrome, chemotherapy-induced neuropathy, and caregiver wellbeing, also covered in this webinar.

4. Cannabis and Pupil Response: Study Examines Eye Measurements after Recent Inhalation

Measuring the size of pupils may be useful in assessing acute cannabis inhalation, a recent study suggests. Pupil measurement and eye changes has been used by law enforcement to assess impairment from cannabis, the study notes, explaining that some previous studies have used pupillometer technology to objectively measure changes in pupils. This current study aimed to use this technology to measure pupil sensitivity and size of pupils after recent cannabis inhalation. “Pupillary dynamics as a marker of acute cannabis inhalation,” was published in Clinical Toxicology in September 2025. The work was supported through funding from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA).

The researchers found that compared with the control group, cannabis inhalation was not associated with reliable changes in maximum pupil size, when measured in darkness. Diminished pupil dynamics, including pupil response to light, were more predictive of cannabis use.

5. New York OCM Awards $5 Million In First Cannabis Community Reinvestment Grants

The New York State Office of Cannabis Management (OCM), announced that in partnership with the Cannabis Advisory Board, it had awarded the first grants stemming from the Community Grants Reinvestment Fund. Throughout the state of New York, 50 youth-focused non-profits were able to receive $5 million in funding.

The grant money was generated through tax revenue from New York’s more than $2 billion adult-use cannabis market. In New York’s cannabis market, some of the revenue generated is reinvested into communities that have been affected by past drug policies and enforcement. The grants are used all over the state in organizations that offer services, such as workforce development, mental health, and housing stability.