Truro — With the Cannabis Act ready to go into effect Oct. 17, the Poison Control Centre is making changes effective on that date as well. So, the new number for cannabis-related overmedication will be 310-3030 and will be called the Cannabis Control Hotline (CCH).
When contacted by The Manatee, Frank Grinner of Grinner’s Food Systems, the parent company of Greco Pizza, was unaware of the change. However, Grinner asserted that he and his staff are more than capable of handling the responsibility of assisting people who have overmedicated on marijuana or edibles.
“Look, we’ve been doing this for years, just under the radar. Everyone knows that Greco donairs are the antidote for a too-intense high…or maybe craving them is just a byproduct of being stoned. Who the hell knows?
“Anyhow, here at Greco we are ready to serve the public in our new role. We may have to train our staff to detect what a person needs — donairs or pizzas depending on symptoms they exhibit. And if all else fails, we can bring in the big guns: Captain Submarine is known for handling the most severe cases of being fried.”
Locals are pleased that they will not have to learn a new phone number, or take the time to program it into their phones.
“I already know that song — I could sing it in my sleep,” said pothead and pizza-lover Matt Lowell of Truro. “So when I’ve had a little too much I just call 310-3030 — same as always, right? Nice that nothing’s changing, except now I don’t have to pretend I’m not high when I call.”
What is uncertain at this time is whether medication from Greco will be covered by Medicare.
“We’re still looking into it,” said Roger MacDonald of the Nova Scotia Department of Health and Wellness. “We’re unclear how we will differentiate between who is overmedicated, and people who just like pizza. I mean, everyone will be trying to get Greco covered under Medicare. Also, we’re not sure of how much we are going to cover; we may have to pass along some of the burden to private health insurance companies.”
MacDonald expects a decision before Oct. 17.