During the 2024 legislative session, Maine lawmakers approved a bill that removed the requirements for labeling individual cannabis-infused gummies with a universal symbol. (Photo by Getty Images)
Amid an increasing number of reports of children in Maine ingesting cannabis , some worry that a new law could exacerbate the situation.
States across the country are grappling with an increase in child cannabis ingestions, especially in the past few years as more states have moved to legalize. Accidental ingestions in children can lead to toxicity, which can cause symptoms such as vomiting or respiratory issues. The data for Maine varies because there isn’t one route for reporting incidents; some families may call poison control and others may go straight to the hospital, but multiple sources point to a notable increase in the past five years.
Earlier this year, lawmakers approved a bill that removed the requirements for labeling individual cannabis-infused gummies with a universal symbol. While the new law is intended to help certain small businesses, some experts worry that its potential to exacerbate an already worsening problem of children accidentally consuming the products is being overlooked.
“Accidental ingestion in minors is a real problem,” said John Hudak, director of the Maine Office of Cannabis Policy.
Data on child cannabis ingestions
Data on child cannabis ingestion incidents was shared at a meeting with the Legislature’s Health and Human Services Committee last week. There was data from both the Northern New England Poison Center and the Maine Child Death & Serious Injury Review Panel showing a significant increase.
In 2023, the Northern New England Poison Center saw 71 incidents of children under 13 in Maine ingesting cannabis. That total is up from the 36 incidents reported in 2019. Almost three out of every five reports last year were children aged 5 and under.
The Maine Child Death & Serious Injury Review Panel received reports of 46 child cannabis ingestions last year, up from the 11 reports it received in 2020. The panel received 19 reports in the first half of this year, Mark Moran, a social worker who leads the panel, shared with the committee.
Both datasets only include reports where cannabis was the only known substance to be ingested. Moran shared additional data about opioid and fentanyl ingestion, but cannabis accounted for almost half the ingestion reports the panel received last year.
“We do hear often that these are small numbers and maybe inconsequential, but this is one piece of the puzzle,” said Lexi Perry, a substance use prevention specialist with the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention. “I think we as a system are trying to use the best data that we have available.”
Maine Sen. Joe Baldacci (D-Penobscot), who chairs the committee, was quick to jump in and say that the committee doesn’t see the numbers as “small” or “inconsequential.”
“It’s all very important because these are very vulnerable children and it’s really something that we can prevent by using our heads,” he added.
Data also show that almost half of the cases reported to the Northern New England Poison Center resulted in “moderate or major” health outcomes for the children, Perry said.
Moderate outcomes could be severe drowsiness or difficulty breathing. Children with major outcomes may need to be put on a ventilator or placed in intensive care. For younger kids, it likely takes less to have a more severe effect because of their smaller size, Perry said.
A step backward
After hearing the data, state Rep. Michele Meyer (D-Eliot) said the new packaging law for gummies was a regression in safety protocols.
“If we truly believe that we can have an impact on the health and wellbeing of children in Maine, we have to look at this issue,” she said.
Meyer added that she had deep regret over what she sees as the Legislature weakening regulations around the labeling of cannabis products. “Unfortunately, we have taken a big, giant step backward here,” she said.
The new law in question was introduced in a bill from state Rep. David Boyer (R-Poland) in response to what he called an “unfair” application of the law. The legislation adds gummies to the list of cannabis products that are “impracticable” to individually label with a universal cannabis symbol. Other products that were already on that list include popcorn, chips, pretzels and granola.
It passed the Maine House of Representatives 102-36 and the Senate without a roll call vote. Gov. Janet Mills allowed Boyer’s bill to become law without her signature. The law took effect in April.
Hudak said his team at the Office of Cannabis Policy echoed Meyer’s concerns about the new law. He said balancing the perspectives of businesses with public health and safety can be a challenge at times, but the office was clear with its concerns of unintended consequences by removing the universal symbol from gummy products.
The office eventually supported an amended version of the bill, but Hudak said there was still “discomfort with the policy choice.”
A universal symbol may not mean anything to a 4-year-old, but it could be a tool for an adult taking care of that child who may be unfamiliar with the products, Hudak said at the Health and Human Services committee meeting.
Similarly, David Nathan, a doctor who testified in opposition to Boyer’s original bill, said although cannabis is safer than alcohol and tobacco, it is not harmless. Nathan, who founded a national physicians' association committed to the legalization and responsible regulation of cannabis, said the cannabis industry should be competitive and not overregulated, he argued public health and safety can’t be compromised.
“An embossed or printed symbol on edibles is the last line of defense against accidental ingestion,” Nathan wrote in his testimony.
In a statement, Boyer pushed back on some of those concerns, pointing to the strong legislative support for the bill. "The reforms passed by a bipartisan supermajority of the Legislature maintain all existing packaging and labeling requirements including child-resistant packaging labeled with the THC Universal Symbol,” Boyer said., in a statement. “This is simply more Reefer Madness 2.0 from John Hudak and the OCP.”
Maine Rep. Marc Malon (D-Biddeford), who sits on the committee that worked on the bill, said he was disappointed the Office of Cannabis Policy backed down on its opposition to the bill.
In committee, Malon supported a different version that would have still required the symbol for gummies but offered more options for businesses to affix the symbol. However, that version of the bill didn’t make it to the House floor, so Malon voted against the final bill’s enactment.
As for child cannabis ingestions, Malon said he doesn’t think “it’s a five-alarm fire, but I do think it’s a problem.” He said he strongly supports legal cannabis, but he said the industry should be “responsible stewards of the products and doing what they can to ensure that it doesn’t end up in the wrong hands or ingested by the wrong person.”
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