Dr. John Howard opens webinar on cannabis and workers' compensation: transcript

Key points

• Dr. Howard is introduced as NIOSH Director and World Trade Center Health Program Administrator, first appointed NIOSH Director in 2002 and reappointed in 2009 and 2015.
• His background includes medicine, public health, law and business degrees, and he served in California's occupational safety and health division from 1991 through 2002.
• Cannabis sativa has been used for industrial, medical and non-medical purposes for thousands of years, yet remains controversial in medicine, law and workplace safety.
• In 2018, nearly 18% of full-time workers and nearly 21% of part-time workers used cannabis.
• Detailed surveillance data are needed on which industries and occupations see the most use, when workers consume, and how it relates to productivity and safety.
• Past workplace practices assumed cannabis use was always illegal and a moral failing, so they must be reconsidered now that it is legal in many states.

Chapters

1. 0:02Introduction of Dr. John Howard and his career
2. 1:18History of cannabis and its controversy
3. 1:59Cannabis use among US workers
4. 2:37Need for surveillance and updated workplace policies
5. 4:16Role of cannabis in workers' compensation and thanks

Full transcript

0:02And now it is my pleasure to introduce Dr. Howard. John Howard is the Director of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health and the Administrator of the World Trade Center Health Program in the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Dr. Howard was first appointed NIOSH Director in 2002 during the George W. Bush Administration and served in that position until 2008. In 2009, Dr. Howard worked as a consultant with the U.S.-Afghanistan Health Initiative. In September of 2009, Dr. Howard was again appointed NIOSH Director and was reappointed for a third six-year term in 2015.

0:38Prior to his appointments as NIOSH Director and World Trade Center Health Program Administrator, Dr. Howard served as Chief of the Division of Occupational Safety and Health in the State of California's Labor and Workforce Development Agency from 1991 through 2002. Dr. Howard earned a Doctor of Medicine from Loyola University of Chicago, a Master of Public Health from the Harvard University School of Public Health, a Doctor of Law from the University of California at Los Angeles, as well as a Master of Law in Administrative Law and Economic Regulation, and a Master of Business Administration in Healthcare Management, both degrees from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

1:18Dr. Howard is board certified in internal medicine and occupational medicine. He is admitted to the practice of medicine and law in the state of California and in the District of Columbia, and he is a member of the US Supreme Court Bar. He has written numerous articles on occupational health policy and law. Over to you, Dr. Howard. Thank you, Jamie, and welcome everyone. Cannabis sativa is one of the oldest and most widely used plants in the world. Native to Asia, the different cultivars of cannabis sativa have been used for a wide variety of industrial, medical, and non-medical uses for thousands of years.

1:59Despite its long history, the use of cannabis-derived products remains a source of controversy across the fields of medicine, law, and occupational safety and health. More favorable public attitudes about cannabis in the United States have resulted in greater access to cannabis through legalization by states and have led to more consumption. In 2018, for example, nearly 18% of workers employed full-time and nearly 21% of workers employed part-time used cannabis.

2:37Although large scale surveys about worker consumption are at a first step, detailed occupational surveillance data are needed. Surveillance studies about the specific industries and occupations where worker cannabis consumption is most prevalent, the frequency and timing of consumption relative to work shifts, and the relationship of consumption to productivity and workplace safety would provide all of us a more detailed profile of worker cannabis consumption. As medicalization and legalization of cannabis proceed apace with increased cannabis consumption among working adults, so does the need for employers, workers, occupational safety and health practitioners, workers' compensation insurers, and researchers to address the impacts that cannabis consumption is having on existing workplace safety and health policies, programs, and practices.

3:43As more states adopt cannabis access laws, and as Congress continues to consider the merits of federal legalization, the implications for existing workplace policy programs and practices become more salient. Past workplace practices were grounded in a time when cannabis consumption was always viewed as problematic, considered a moral failing, and universally illegal.

4:16Now, as cannabis is legally available to workers in many states, attention needs to be focused on the implications and the challenges surrounding cannabis and work. today we explore an important dimension of cannabis use the role of cannabis in the workers compensation insurance system i want to thank each of our expert presenters for sharing their knowledge with us today and i also want to thank the niosh center for workers compensation studies and the niosh office of total worker health for presenting this valuable learning opportunity for us today. Back to you, Jamie.

Source and licence

Recording: File:Excerpt of Webinar： Cannabis & Workers’ Compensation： Now What？.webm by Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2021-01-29), via Wikimedia Commons. Licence: Public domain.

The transcript is machine speech-to-text by the TidyTools Audio & video transcriber; the summary, key points and chapters were written by Claude from that transcript. Both may contain errors: check the recording before quoting it.