 | | December 13, 2022 Dear Supporter, One Chance to Grow Up started as a group of concerned parents, who came together in 2012 after marijuana was legalized. The Governor's task force ranked the “health, safety, and well-being” of kids last in priorities during Colorado’s initial policy proceedings. It was immediately decided that our kids needed a voice to help protect their future. Since then, we’ve been the sole voice dedicated to kids, actively involved in marijuana education and policy making. Why it Matters: Through our education and advocacy activities and with the support and engagement of many thousands of citizens, key community stakeholders, and coalition partners we’ve helped to secure important youth safeguards and impacted over 23 pieces of legislation. What you need to know: Without a collective voice for kid protections and some hard-fought battles, many of the policies and regulations in Colorado that are now in place would never have come about, including: - Child-resistant packaging
- Product testing
- Advertising and marketing restrictions
- Marking edibles to identify THC
- Universal THC symbol (CO)
- Limited serving and package THC amounts for non-medical edibles
- Package labeling/potency requirements
- Ban on THC sprayed on pre-made foods
- Ban on human, animal or fruit-shaped edibles
- Reduced home-grown plant count from 99 to 12
- Required mandatory pregnancy warning at the point of sale
- Monitoring, data collection, and reporting requirements
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| The latest safeguards are thanks to HB21-1317. Colorado closed some loopholes that allowed 18-year-olds, many still in high school, to easily attain a medical marijuana card and purchase large amounts of high-potency THC (double the amount available to adults in the recreational market). |
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| January - October 2022 There has been a 52% decrease in 18-20 year old medical marijuana patients. |
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Additional protections now required. - Medical marijuana concentrate daily purchase amounts reduced to 2 grams for those under 21
- Tracking of medical marijuana purchases in real time
- 2 physician recommendations for those under 21 and updated medical marijuana certification form
- New advertising rules limiting marketing directly to those under 21 years of age
- Educational potency resource specifying health warnings required at point of sale
- Coroners’ full toxicology report for all non-natural deaths (excluding homicide) for every CO death under 25 years of age
- Scientific Review Committee on THC Potency to report to the legislature
- Colorado School of Public Health to produce public education campaign regarding the effect of high-potency marijuana on the developing brain and physical and mental health concerns using the findings reported from the Scientific Review Committee
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| We will continue to monitor the implementation of policy and educational campaigns to ensure the best possible outcomes from these legislative actions. There are now 38 states that have legalized medical marijuana and 21 states have legal adult-use marijuana laws. As marijuana commercialization expands across the U.S. it will become more important for standardized regulation and enforcement. Listed are some safeguards to consider on a statewide as well as federal level. - Child-resistant packaging
- Universal THC warning symbol
- Potency caps, limits on THC and servings per package with directions for use
- Restrictions on types/shapes/flavors of THC products
- Required label disclosing pesticides, and chemicals used throughout product production
- Mandatory pre-sale product testing and product recall authority
- Standardized government health and safety disclosures and warnings on labels
- Restrictions on advertising and marketing that reach kids
- Prohibiting product branding on tangible items associated with children
- No digital or social media advertising
- Significant fees and penalties for violations pertaining to selling and/or distributing to minors with national reporting of such violations
- Funding for a nationwide public awareness campaign focused on preventing underage use
- Baseline and ongoing data collection that allows policymakers and regulators to monitor, assess, and publicly report on health impacts of marijuana legalization including use during childhood and adolescence
What you can do: Support data collection - Data Matters to create strong policy by following the science. Report violations to your local authorities -underage access, advertising, and health harms Continue to speak out to protect our children and young adults across the country. It is an ongoing effort to keep up with the ever-evolving THC products and marketing strategies. We will continue to provide current information and distribute updated parent, educator, legislator, and consumer education. Please support our continued efforts and donate today. We are grateful for every donation. No action is too trivial, no amount is too small when it comes to protecting kids. |
| | During this holiday season, we hope you can spend extra time with family and friends, and find peace as 2022 winds down. We want to thank all of the coalition partners, community organizations, and individuals who have supported us and helped protect kids over the last 10 years. Our kids are our future and only have One Chance to Grow Up. Happy Holidays! The One Chance Team Check out our new THCPhotos.org for free, licensed, downloadable photos for your use, of products sold in states where adult use marijuana is legal. Visit our website for more information and follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. |
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| | One Chance to Grow Up protects kids from today’s marijuana through transparency, education, empowerment and policy. We don’t take sides on the politics of legalization for adults but instead serve as a reliable resource for parents, media, policymakers, and all those who care about kids. Started by concerned parents and supported entirely by charitable contributions, One Chance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit project of the Colorado Nonprofit Development Center. | | | | |
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| One Chance to Grow Up
789 Sherman Street Suite 250 | Denver, Colorado 80203
info@onechancetogrowup.org |
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