SNCH poll: Residents split on legalizing pot

In 2014, New York joined 30 states that legalized marijuana use for medicinal purposes, allowing doctors to prescribe it and its derivatives for ailments ranging from epilepsy and chronic pain to symptoms resulting from cancer treatment.

Now, depending on November’s election results, the state could be inching toward legalizing the drug for recreational use, with Gov. Andrew Cuomo set to visit Hofstra University on Thursday to discuss the topic. New York would be the 10th state to do so.

The possibility of legislation has led to sharply divided opinions. In its latest Truth in Medicine poll, South Nassau Communities Hospital revealed on Sept. 20 that among the 600 residents of New York City and Long Island it surveyed, roughly 50 percent supported legalizing marijuana for recreational use, 40 percent were opposed and the remainder said they were unsure.

The divide was equally apparent among Baldwinites. Dorothy Vaccaro said in an email that she supports the legalization of recreational marijuana. “It’s time to legalize its use,” she said. “If I can go into a liquor store and buy liquor or a supermarket for beer, there’s not a whole lot of difference.”

But some residents, responding to a social media poll, said they oppose legal recreational marijuana use. “Absolutely not,” Elizabeth Kastner said on Facebook. “So tired of the direction this state is heading.” Kim Hill commented, “Oh that’s all we need is a bunch of people high driving around. It’s bad enough driving around town with drunks, people texting and the ones who don’t even know how to drive.”

As South Nassau officials unveiled the poll findings, Dr. Adhi Sharma, the hospital’s chief medical officer, and Dr. Aaron Glatt, the chairman of medicine, discussed what science has discovered about how the drug affects the body and how other states and countries have dealt with legalization.

Sharma said that for much of human history, societies have relied on marijuana for recreation. “It’s part of the culture,” he said, “just like in our society, where alcohol has been part of the culture, used for its intoxicating effects.”

The United States has banned the use of marijuana for roughly 80 years, but now, as talks have accelerated to reverse that stance, Sharma said, “We worry about what the impact would be.”

Some of it, he said, could be gleaned from looking at what studies have shown and the experiences of other states and countries that have legalized marijuana for recreational use.

“First, marijuana definitely impairs your ability to drive,” Sharma said, explaining that someone who has smoked before getting behind the wheel has a 25 percent greater chance of getting into an accident, while someone who has had a few drinks of alcohol is twice as likely to get into an accident, and after a few more drinks [is] three times as likely.”

From an addiction standpoint, Sharma, citing statistics from the Centers for Disease Control, said that there is a 1 in 10 chance that an adult could become addicted to marijuana. “Marijuana is a non-lethal agent,” he said. “You can’t kill yourself with marijuana, and the addiction is mild compared to other substances.”

Additionally, he said, in the states where medical marijuana use has been legalized, there has been a 14 percent reduction in opioids being prescribed for pain relief, resulting in 3.9 million fewer opioid pills being taken per day.

Addressing the concept of marijuana as a gateway drug to harder substances, Sharma noted that in the Netherlands — where recreational marijuana use has been legal for the past 40 years — there has been no statistical evidence showing that adolescents who use it move on to other drugs. “Their experience does not suggest it’s a gateway drug,” he said.

Glatt focused on the dangers that recreational marijuana use poses to children. In particular, he noted that the addiction rate among adolescents is higher than adults, and according to the CDC, there is a 1 in 6 chance that teenagers will become addicted to it.

“Much more importantly, there is a well-known toxicity to the brain of developing people,” he said, noting that it is one of the last organs to develop in the human body.

Studies, Glatt said, have shown that marijuana has been proven to lower IQs among habitual teenage users of the drug, and education, both of the doctors agreed, was crucial to protecting teenagers from the associated dangers.

“Whatever we as a public decide,” Glatt said, “there certainly needs to be safeguards put into place [so] that the wrong people aren’t abusing recreational marijuana.”

State Sen. Todd Kaminsky, a Democrat from Long Beach, said he believes that passage of recreational marijuana-use legislation is likely, and that his focus is on how to ensure that any new laws cover all bases to protect public safety.

“I understand that a large part of my district is interested in legalization. I think this is going to happen,” Kaminsky said. “I’m trying to get out in front, and what we must demand for is safety.”

Of chief concern, he said, is ensuring that roads remain safe, and the need for additional funds for law enforcement for training and technology to identify whether motorists are driving while high.

Additionally, he said, any legislation would need to prevent marijuana sellers from marketing their products to adolescents and teenagers.

Public consumption of marijuana, Kaminsky added, should be regulated much as alcohol is, with tickets and fines for smoking in public.

“I’m in the process of learning as much as I can,” he said of consulting with other elected officials and law enforcement, “and I suggest other people do the same.”