Canadian CANNAINVESTOR Magazine September 2018 | Page 350

do not adequately stock high CBD content strains or for that matter any strain that a patient has found ideal for treatment then this market gap would likely be filled by the very Black Market all relevant stakeholders, including the CMA, want to curtail if not eliminate. It would be counter productive, to put it mildly, for medical patients to once again turn to the Black Market for their medication.

I never thought I would become a patient advocate wrestling powerful deep pockets that want to undo Canada’s world leading progressive medical use framework and yet I now find myself in the square circle with one of most powerful and influential lobbying groups in Canada.

There is also another piece conveniently omitted. Benefits coverage is not a blank cheque and pharmacists, for some drugs, will only dispense for example a one monthly supply at a time for some prescriptions and benefits companies will not reimburse for over prescribing or aggressively premature prescription refilling. In other words, medical benefits coverage may act as a layer of patient safeguarding. The CMA’s stated position to phase out the medical use framework is perhaps as Alanis sang it best … isn’t it ironic … don’t you think …

The threats to this industry are real and this creates significant investor uncertainty and volatility. The prudent Retail Investor must be more vigilant than ever. We all know of the threats that the Black Market poses. We all know the risk of relying on bulletin boards, social media, paid promoters, USA industry influencers temporarily in Canada, platforms such as Fool & SA & subreddit; however, sometimes the greatest threats are the ones we do not see because like sharks in the deep circling are just out of sight. And just like how sharks do not magically appear but rather are circling just outside of sight, the CMA position is not new and can be found in the policy statement download provided earlier and is from January 2018. In other words, is the greatest threat to the medical-use framework hidden in plain sight?

The CMA’s position if adopted by our Government is an example of how the real threats are not the ones we see daily in the headlines, company press releases, or in government briefings. If the CMA’s position is adopted, how many Canadians will ever know that the CMA lobbied for the phasing out of what to so many has become medicine and an effective alternative to pharmaceutical prescriptions including addictive and dangerous opioids?

Until next time, continue to invest long and prosper and your CannaInvestor Magazine team will keep connecting the dots so that you do not have to because of our commitment to service over self-interest.

Please keep in mind that all content in every issue of CannaInvestor Magazine is not intended as investment, financial, legal, medical, or tax advice. All content is provided for discussion, awareness, and educational purposes only.

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