Data released by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Jan. 14 revealed that one in six cases of vaping-related lung illness, or EVALI, can be linked to legally purchased cannabis products.
The federal report is based on 809 patients in Illinois, USA Today reported, and found that just 16% of users said they bought their products from commercial sources only. The majority said they obtained their THC vapes from informal sources, including family, friends and online dealers.
The CDC said there’s danger even in states where marijuana is legal, because consumers may not know if any given store or dispensary is licensed by the state. According to the new report, the Bureau of Cannabis Control confiscated some 10,000 illegal vape pens from unlicensed retailers over two days last month.
“The data is clear on two fronts,” Kevin Sabet, a former senior drug policy adviser to the Obama administration, told USA Today. “Legal, licensed products cannot be conclusively stated as safe—as Big Marijuana’s lobbyists have so desperately tried to do—and legalization has only served to make the underground market more dangerous.”
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After graduating from Indiana University-Bloomington with a bachelor’s in journalism, Anicka joined TriMed’s Chicago team in 2017 covering cardiology. Close to her heart is long-form journalism, Pilot G-2 pens, dark chocolate and her dog Harper Lee.