TY - JOUR
T1 - Cannabis consumption patterns among frequent consumers in Uruguay
AU - Boidi, María Fernanda
AU - Queirolo, Rosario
AU - Cruz, José Miguel
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Elsevier B.V.
PY - 2016/8/1
Y1 - 2016/8/1
N2 - Background In 2013, Uruguay became the first country to fully regulate the cannabis market, which now operates under state control. Cannabis can be legally acquired in three ways: growing it for personal use (self-cultivation), cannabis club membership, and from pharmacies (not yet implemented). Users must be entered into a confidential official registry to gain access. Methods This article presents findings of a Respondent Driven Sample survey of 294 high-frequency cannabis consumers in the Montevideo metropolitan area. Results Frequent consumers resort to more than one method for acquiring cannabis, with illegal means still predominating after 1 year of the new regulation law. Cannabis users overwhelmingly support the current regulation, but many of them are reluctant to register. Conclusions Some of the attitudes and behaviors of the high-frequency consumers pose a challenge to the success of the cannabis law. Individuals relying on more than one method of access defy the single access clause, a prerequisite for legal use, while the maximum amount of cannabis individuals can access monthly seems too high even for most frequent consumers, which might promote the emergence of a grey market. Reluctance to register among a significant proportion of high-frequency consumers raises doubts about the law's ability to achieve its stated objectives.
AB - Background In 2013, Uruguay became the first country to fully regulate the cannabis market, which now operates under state control. Cannabis can be legally acquired in three ways: growing it for personal use (self-cultivation), cannabis club membership, and from pharmacies (not yet implemented). Users must be entered into a confidential official registry to gain access. Methods This article presents findings of a Respondent Driven Sample survey of 294 high-frequency cannabis consumers in the Montevideo metropolitan area. Results Frequent consumers resort to more than one method for acquiring cannabis, with illegal means still predominating after 1 year of the new regulation law. Cannabis users overwhelmingly support the current regulation, but many of them are reluctant to register. Conclusions Some of the attitudes and behaviors of the high-frequency consumers pose a challenge to the success of the cannabis law. Individuals relying on more than one method of access defy the single access clause, a prerequisite for legal use, while the maximum amount of cannabis individuals can access monthly seems too high even for most frequent consumers, which might promote the emergence of a grey market. Reluctance to register among a significant proportion of high-frequency consumers raises doubts about the law's ability to achieve its stated objectives.
KW - Cannabis regulation
KW - Respondent driven sampling
KW - Uruguay
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84989866911&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.drugpo.2016.05.008
DO - 10.1016/j.drugpo.2016.05.008
M3 - Artículo
C2 - 27397717
AN - SCOPUS:84989866911
SN - 0955-3959
VL - 34
SP - 34
EP - 40
JO - International Journal of Drug Policy
JF - International Journal of Drug Policy
ER -