Despite criticism from doctors and from the federal states, Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) is sticking to the intention of the governing coalition to legalize the possession and consumption of cannabis by adults in limited quantities. He refers to a new study conducted by the Institute for Interdisciplinary Addiction and Drug Research on behalf of his institution. "The results of the study confirm our plans for the controlled distribution of cannabis to adults," Lauterbach writes in a letter to the government factions and the other federal ministries.

Christian Geinitz

Business correspondent in Berlin

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Above all, Lauterbach is concerned with the compatibility of the partial drug release with the protection of minors and the suppression of the black market. "The experience of other countries with other regulatory approaches shows that it is right to put the protection of children, young people and health as well as the containment of the illegal market for cannabis at the centre of our legislative projects," said the minister.

Better access for teens

Experience shows without a doubt "that measures to ensure the protection of children and young people and to reduce the attractiveness of the products for young people must be provided for in the implementation of legalization," Lauterbach writes to the other politicians: At the same time, he expressly thanks them for their willingness to "follow this path".

But he also makes it clear that the discussion will continue: "I look forward to the further debate." Resistance has already been announced by the federal states, including CDU-led Saxony and, above all, Bavaria under the CSU government. However, the states will probably not be able to stop the plans, as they do not have to go through the Bundesrat, the state chamber, according to Lauterbach's wishes.

However, the study "Effects of Cannabis Legalization (ECaLe)" is by no means as clear in its support of the traffic light plans as it seems. It is hardly surprising that experience has shown that fewer adults obtain their intoxicants from illegal sources after the release, according to the paper. However, if there is an approved commercial market that is interested in expansion, there is a risk that more young people will consume cannabis – but that is exactly what the traffic light allegedly does not want.

Better fabric, more use

After evaluating expert interviews and more than 160 studies on cannabis release in other countries, the authors also note that a slight increase in consumption can be expected overall after legalization. The negative consequences are weak, but nevertheless detectable: For example, the number of emergency admissions due to acute or chronic cannabis-related restrictions in adults or traffic accidents related to the drug has risen slightly. However, an increase in psychoses could not be observed.

Lauterbach is confirmed in his assessment that the contamination of the intoxicants decreases after release. The study observed fewer cases of poisoning by synthetic cannabinoids and other added substances. It is also positive that the topic is being taken out of the grey area and that cannabis users find it easier to talk to medical staff about their problems. "In summary, it should be noted that health protection for adults is likely to change only slightly as a result of legalization in Germany, at least in the short term," it says.

In fact, it is more likely to be minors among whom dangers occur, as the study notes. Those who take drugs early and regularly before the age of 18 could develop social and health problems. Researchers and critics had repeatedly pointed out that the human brain continues to grow until the age of 25 and can be damaged by cannabis – even beyond the release age of 18. Lauterbach also sees this risk, which is why there is an age limit of 21 years in his plans as a kind of compromise, for example in questions of the maximum dispensing of the drug in so-called "cannabis clubs", i.e. non-commercial cultivation associations.

The minister has also shown restraint towards food containing narcotics, so-called edibles. In the United States, the investigation has found a significant increase in intoxication and intoxication in children under the age of ten where edibles are sold. Presumably, therefore, the ban on these products desired by Lauterbach will remain.