Child Poisonings Spur Oregon to Weigh New Limits for Cannabis Edibles

Key TakeawaysChild poisonings may prompt Oregon Senate to weigh new THC limitIndividual servings of edibles like gummies could contain 10 mg of THCA committee is expected to decide today whether to send the measure to the full Senate.THURSDAY, Feb. 12, 2026 (HealthDay News) — Amid growing reports of kids needing medical attention after consuming edibles that look like their favorite treats, Oregon lawmakers are weighing tighter limits on how much cannabis one serving can contain."We need to reckon with this a little bit," said state Sen. Lisa Reynolds, a pediatrician from Portland who leads the state Senate’s Early Childhood and Behavioral Health Committee.Children age 5 and under made up a third of cannabis-related cases reported to the Oregon Poison Center in 2023.Reynolds’ committee is expected to decide today whether to advance a bill to the Senate floor to bar the sale of individual edibles like cookies, brownies and gummies that contain more than 10 milligrams of THC, the Oregon Capital Chronicle reported.The aim is to prevent access to edibles with 50 to 100 mg of THC that are meant to be divided into several servings.THC, short for tetrahydrocannabinol, is the chemical in cannabis that produces a high.Oregon is among 24 states where cannabis is legal for recreational use and 40 where it is legal for medical use.If Senate Bill 1548 is enacted, single-serve cannabis edibles in Oregon would have the same limits as its nearest neighbor to the north.In 2017, Washington limited single servings of edibles to 10 milligrams. That law was linked to a 75% drop in hospitalizations and half as many reports to poison centers, Julia Dilley told an Oregon Senate Committee reviewing the proposed changes. Dilley, an epidemiologist in Portland, has led research on the public health effects of cannabis laws in Oregon and Washington.If Oregon follows Washington’s lead, it would join 13 states that limit individual serving sizes to 10 mg, according to the Network for Public Health Law. Three states — Connecticut, Vermont and Virginia — limit individual servings to 5 mg, and Massachusetts has a 5.5 mg limit.At a state Senate hearing on the proposed 10 mg limit, the Oregon Poison Center’s medical director was among four doctors who testified in favor of it, the Capital Chronicle reported.Dr. Rob Hendrickson told the panel he had recently cared for a toddler who had eaten two muffins, each containing 50 mg of THC. Within 60 minutes, the little girl turned blue and unconscious, he said. She had a seizure and spent 36 hours on life support.Four people from the cannabis industry, including manufacturers who emphasized that many of their products are sold in child-resistant packaging, testified in opposition to the measure.Gabe Parton Lee, general counsel for the edibles manufacturer Wyld, said Oregon should work with the cannabis industry to teach kids about cannabis, just like alcohol or guns."I’m asking that this bill be tabled so that we can actually come back for a solution towards education that prioritizes what cannabis products are, how to responsibly consume them and how to responsibly store them," he said.In May, experts urged lawmakers to implement a THC cap for cannabis products, similar to alcohol and tobacco. They said data show that most young people in Oregon are convinced that smoking cannabis once a month poses little to no risk.More informationThe Network for Public Health Law has more on cannabis regulations.SOURCES: Oregon Capital Chronicle, Feb. 10, 2026.What This Means For YouIndividual servings of products like gummies, brownies and cookies would be limited in THC content..Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Child Poisonings Spur Oregon to Weigh New Limits for Cannabis Edibles

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