THC DRIVING LAWS AND A POTENTIAL TAILWIND

Let’s take a squiz at Australia’s medical THC driving laws and weigh them against 2 iconic Aussie standards of life, ‘fair dinkum’ & ‘fair go’.

For a start, David Heilpern, a former magistrate who stepped down from his position at Lismore Local Court, had this to say:

“I just thought the laws were so grossly unfair that I didn’t feel that I could continue to apply them,”
“An enormous number, the vast majority of people who are brought before the courts on this charge, are not affected [by the drug].”

1. What is this “grossly unfair” law?

DPMP_Bulletin_29.pdf (unsw.edu.au)

As outlined in Table 1, all states use a zero-tolerance threshold, that is, any amount detected is considered an offence.

By contrast, recreational drug alcohol has a 0.05 BAC leeway. On what scientific grounds is this distinction based? We’ll get back to that later, though.

And neither is the punishment a slap on the wrist.



As outlined in Table 2, the average penalty specified for a first Roadside Drug Testing (RDT) offence is a fine of up to $1,051, and where applicable, a minimum license cancellation period of 4.2 months and imprisonment for up to 3 months.

Not only are there some big biscuits going into the state coffers, but license cancellation & potential imprisonment to boot.

But, surely you can just show your prescription and that’s okay, right? That’s a defense in some countries, just not in zero tolerance Australia.

Here’s VicRoads’ clarity on the matter:

“A valid prescription for medicinal cannabis cannot be used as a defense against a charge of testing positive for THC on a roadside drug test.”

2. What testing do the states use?

Most states use oral saliva testing alone to detect the presence of drugs, a testing system that has been strongly criticized by Academic Director of the Lambert Initiative, Professor Iain McGregor who said:

“The strong and direct relationship between blood-alcohol concentrations and impaired driving encourages people to think that such relationships apply to all drugs, but this is certainly not the case with cannabis. We clearly need more reliable ways of identifying cannabis-impairment on the roads and the workplace. This is a particularly pressing problem for the rapidly increasing number of patients in Australia who are using legal medicinal cannabis yet are prohibited from driving.”


THC in blood and saliva are poor measures of cannabis impairment - The University of Sydney

3. How long does THC stay in my system? I.e., When can I drive?

This is a really challenging question to answer. Per Australian Access Clinics:

“THC is typically detectable in oral fluid for 4–6 hours after smoking or vaporizing cannabis, although this is highly variable across individuals and depends on factors such as salivary composition, flow rate, time since eating and frequency of THC use.”
Can You Drive When Taking Medical Cannabis? - Australian Access Clinics (auscannabisclinics.com.au)

4. But it’s dangerous to drive under the influence of THC, so these laws are serving to protect citizens, right?

Well according to the Australian Journal or General Practice 'Medical cannabis and driving' Volume 50, Issue 6, June 2021:

“Overall, the increase in crash risk associated with THC is similar to that associated with a low-range blood alcohol concentration (BAC; 0.01–0.05 g/L).” See table 1.


Yet drivers who have been served alcohol by a bartender have a leeway of 0.05 BAC, whereas patients who have been legally prescribed medical cannabis containing THC by a doctor do not.

“The mere presence of THC in blood or oral fluid THC does not reliably predict impairment, although current mobile drug testing methods and associated laws rely entirely on this.”

“Results confirmed modest but clinically relevant driving impairment at 40–100 minutes but not 240–300 minutes post-treatment. These findings are the first to indicate that moderate doses of inhaled cannabis are unlikely to impair driving performance for more than four hours.”


In very heavy cannabis users, however, THC may be detectable in oral fluid for up to three days following abstinence even though they have had 0% impairment for days at this point.

Sorry cobber, but 0% impairment still equals a fine, license suspension and possible imprisonment.

5. Potential Legislative Tailwind

The Victorian government is currently considering legislation introduced by Fiona Patten (Leader of Reason) that would allow patients using medical cannabis to legally drive with THC in their systems provided they are not impaired.

This would bring THC driving laws for medical patients on the same footing as other Big Pharma drugs known to impair driving, such as opioid analgesics, benzodiazepines, antihistamines, etc..

These changes would not extend to the large number of patients self-medicating with illicit cannabis products.

This legal distinction between driving after using street products versus driving after taking prescribed medicine would provide IRX with yet another compelling point of difference over the local dealers.

Surely this kind of legislation would be a very powerful tailwind for IRX's prescribed Medihale system.

South Australia looks to be following suit, too, thanks to Greens upper house MP Tammy Franks who has been in touch with Patten and launched her own Bill in that state.

As quoted from Ms. Franks’ website (emphasis added):

“The Bill provides for a complete defense against the charge of driving with the detectable presence of THC in oral fluid or blood where a person has a valid doctor’s prescription for a medicinal cannabis product containing THC and that product has been administered as directed. The Bill also makes the defense available for persons participating in medicinal cannabis clinical trials, removing a major hurdle for the advancement of cannabinoid science. The defense is not available in any circumstances involving dangerous or reckless driving or in any matter where the police can establish driver impairment.”

Driving reform gathers pace as Greens make move in South Australia - Fiona Patten - Leader of the Reason Party


6. What are other countries doing?

Other countries (for examples, the Netherlands, Belgium, France) have legal limits for THC in oral fluid but typically only request samples when there is evidence of impaired driving. In Canada and some states in America, oral fluid tests can be used to confirm a suspected case of drug-impaired driving, but only when an officer can first demonstrate impaired driving (for example, walk and turn test, finger to nose test, one-legged stand).

Conclusion


Unlike with recreational alcohol and Big Pharma prescription drugs, legitimate THC patients are smacked with a zero tolerance policy widely conducted at random RDT.

The consequences, financial and otherwise, are very very real. Would-be THC patients have a simple choice – break the law and suffer the consequences, or stick phat with big Pharma.

There is nothing ‘fair dinkum’ nor ‘fair go’ about these laws.

Instead, the current laws are a grossly unfair, draconian, coercive, contradictory & discriminatory (alcohol & Big Pharma) revenue generating scam cloaked in the guise of protecting the people.

But there is some great news for any cocaine users out there (if you’re not from NSW), because it seems the police nationwide don’t test for it.


What a crock.

DYOR