regulations should be reduced in scope to allow greater reliance on guidelines and clinical judgment. The report recommended a single inspection format, conducted by one agency, that serves all agencies (Federal, State, and local). In response, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), proposed a certification system by a non-profit entity, requiring all dispensers of methadone to complete certification stating they meet the standards and will comply with them.
Eventually, final rule (21 CFR part 291 and 42 CFR part 8) was released, along with an RFP seeking a non-profit organization to provide these services. CARF is the organization that answered and won that RFP, and is still under contract with Health and Human Services (HHS) to provide those services today. With some small modifications to meet the needs of the cannabis industry, CARF's role with the methadone clinics became the basis of the FOCUS business model.
Founded in 2014, Foundation of Cannabis Unified Standards (FOCUS) was established as the first and only Cannabis Health & Safety Organization, to address the many shortcomings in quality, safety, and consistency that became evident with the explosive growth of the global cannabis industry. FOCUS develops international, cannabis specific, voluntary-consensus standards and third-party certification for the cannabis industry to protect public health, consumer safety, and safeguard the environment.
To eliminate any potential conflict of interest and assure impartiality, FOCUS was established as two independent organizations. The first, a federal, 501(c)(3), not-for-profit organization, is responsible for the development of cannabis specific voluntary-consensus standards and unbiased education. The second, a Delaware C Corporation, is responsible for providing third-party, certification and related services to cannabis businesses and regulatory agencies. Each organization has additional controls built into its corporate structure to abolish any suggestion of impropriety and protect the integrity of FOCUS Standards and Certification.
Lezli Engelking, Founder
Foundation of Cannabis Unified Standards (FOCUS)
Lezli possesses more than two decades of professional experience across pharmaceutical, mental health, non-profit, and cannabis industries. More than twelve years with Eli Lilly Pharmaceuticals laid the perfect foundation for Lezli’s role as Executive Director of the first chain of vertically integrated medical cannabis operations in Phoenix, Arizona. Lezli’s proven success in the highly regulated pharmaceutical industry, combined with her firsthand experience working in the nascent cannabis industry, provided the perfect experience to start FOCUS, the first and only Cannabis Health & Safety Organization.
Founded in 2014, FOCUS addresses the many short comings in quality, safety and consistency that became evident with the explosive growth of the global legal cannabis industry. FOCUS is an international, non-profit, cannabis standards development & third-party certification organization dedicated to protecting public health, consumer safety and safeguarding the environment. FOCUS is not an advocacy organization, nor an industry trade association. FOCUS does not accept membership dues or fees for standards development. This autonomy fosters a principled, objective environment that serves end users, and acts as the bridge between industry and regulatory.
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