First-of-its-Kind Research Project Launched in Massachusetts to Study Veteran Access to Medical Cannabis

In early July 2022, several cannabis organizations and retailers in Massachusetts joined forces and launched a research project to study veteran access to medical cannabis. Directing the project is the Cannabis Center of Excellence (CCOE), a “non-profit organization that conducts citizen-science-focused population studies and programs in the areas of community engagement, medical cannabis, adult-use cannabis, and social justice in the cannabis industry” (1).

“The results from the 2019 veterans medical cannabis study highlighted that regular access to cannabis was a barrier for many veterans,” said Dr. Marion McNabb, DrPH, MPH, president of CCOE. “Gibby's Garden has a strong passion to give back to veterans, and so we teamed up to launch a study that would increase access and help gather opinions and ideas from veterans for future programs. I am most excited to learn if this type of program is feasible at a pilot scale, and how veterans respond to cannabis use.”

According to the project description on the CCOE website, 450 qualifying veterans will complete a baseline survey and will then be able to purchase a cannabis product bundle consisting of Gibby’s Garden products at one of the four participating retail outlets in Massachusetts (1). Additionally, “as part of the research study, participating veterans will be asked to report on access to cannabis issues, products, and its impact on their health and wellness via paper-based forms or a mobile medical cannabis app called Tetragram (1).”

According to CCOE, the four participating cannabis retail outlets are:

• Boston Bud Factory, Holyoke, MA
• The Vault, Worcester, MA
• Seagrass, Salem, MA
• South Shore Buds, Marshfield, MA

This research study is reviewed and approved by the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth Institutional Review Board for human subjects research (1).

For more information on the study or to register, please visit: https://www.cannacenterofexcellence.org/veterans.

For more information on Tetragram, please see our podcast: https://www.cannabissciencetech.com/view/ep-6-tetragram-how-patient-data-is-powering-research

To learn more about the 2019 Veterans study conducted by Dr. McNabb, please visit: https://www.cannapatientcare.com/view/the-2019-veterans-health-and-medical-cannabis-study

Reference

1. https://www.cannacenterofexcellence.org/our-history-1