“Regulation to restrict access in this age group is based on evidence that cannabis affects working memory, brain development, and increases addiction risk when used at an early age,” said senior author of the study, Ryan Sultán, an assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at Columbia University in a press release.
“Overnight, the city went from having a few medical marijuana dispensaries to having a bunch of dispensaries that may or may not have been licensed. But what happens when you deregulate cannabis without a plan to prevent kids from having easy access?” he added.
In the study, researchers examined how age verification and business practices differ among cannabis outlets according to licensing status. To do so, they made a directory of 840 cannabis outlets in New York City using Google Maps. Store types included licensed medical marijuana dispensaries, licensed recreational marijuana dispensaries, unlicensed dispensaries, and smoke shops. Among them, 19 were licensed to sell cannabis.
The researchers then sent a research assistant, aged 22, to pose as an underage cannabis consumer in a random selection of 37 stores to find out about their age verification practices, youth-oriented marketing strategies, and information about product quality.
Unlicensed shops were found to engage in practices that increase youth access to cannabis often. These included infrequent age verification, selling cheaper products, and using more youth-friendly marketing practices.
While all licensed dispensaries verified customer age with photo ID before allowing entrance to the store, the same was true for just 10% of unlicensed outlets. The researchers further found that less than half of unlicensed outlets verified age anywhere along the purchase journey.
“Though our findings may not be generalizable to other cities, they show that legalization of recreational cannabis creates a space for young people to purchase cannabis, creating the potential for harm as regulation struggles to keep up,” concluded Sultán.
Sources: EurekAlert, Pediatrics