Why Testing Drivers For Cannabis Is Hard

(CNN) — As a growing number of states legalize cannabis, health officials are increasingly sounding the alarm for technology that can quickly determine when drivers are stoned. A solution for measuring alcohol intoxication has existed since 1954: the Breathalyzer. No such technology yet exists for cannabis, but several tech startups and university scientists say they’re close to commercializing something resembling a cannabis breathalyzer. Still, others are quick to caution the answer is not that simple. Critics note the technology must detect recent cannabis use and also prove that cannabis in a person’s system impaired his or her driving. A cannabis breathalyzer that does both of those things has proven elusive, because, unlike alcohol, cannabis can stay in people’s bodies long after their “high” has worn off. “We’re applying the alcohol rules to a substance that doesn’t play by them,” said Nick Morrow, a retired Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department narcotics investigator who now serves as an expert witness in areas such as drug symptomology and field sobriety testing. Some legalization advocates and lawmakers want cannabis to be regulated like alcohol and a handful of states have established “per se” limits making it inherently illegal to drive with specific concentrations of the psychoactive cannabis compound delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in one’s system. Although the effects of alcohol h...
Source: WBZ-TV - Breaking News, Weather and Sports for Boston, Worcester and New Hampshire - Category: Consumer Health News Authors: Tags: Boston News Health Cannabis CNN Source Type: news