The had working members of Liuna are fortunate to have an organization that has supported their access to medical cannabis.
Hard-working men and women develop chronic pain issues over their careers and the fact that union members can now get medical cannabis covered is wonderful. Too many people struggling with pain have been forced to use harmful painkillers for years that create complications and put their health at risk.
Now Liuna members can try medical cannabis as an alternative to opioids and it is covered by their benefits. The question for Liuna members is whether the program the union has set up benefits them… or the union.
Let’s do a little research and provide some background information.
At Liuna, 4 of its local branches partnered with a company called Starseed:
- Starseed is a company that aggregates cannabis patients in exchange for educational kickbacks from a Licensed Producer
- WeedMD is a Licensed Producer that grows lots of outdoor cannabis and basic oil tinctures as well as other products
- WeedMD purchased Starseed
- Liuna invested in Starseed
- Liuna is encouraging its members to use Starseed to acquire its medical Cannabis
- Starseed is directing union members almost exclusively to buy from WeedMD
- WeedMD is selling products that are very hard to sell right now in Canada… (i.e. flower and tinctures) at a price point that is very high
- Liuna members are happy because they are getting free weed, but…
Here’s the Big Question:
Are union members getting the best value for their dollars by being pushed to buy products from a connected company?
For example, there are lots of high-quality LPs that make products well suited for union members. For example, there are small soft capsules that contain CBD and THC that are discrete and very convenient for working men and women. Are union members being given access to these products? Are the Starseed Doctors recommending what is best for the patients or are they recommending products that they get “educational” kickbacks from?
Starseed uses contracted “Doctors” who prescribe cannabis to union members over an online platform and automatically enrolls them to purchase cannabis from WeedMD. Therefore, Starseed gets a kickback from WeedMD from every union member it enrolls and Liuna has invested in Starseed so the union makes money off of this relationship. Every time a union member buys cannabis through Starseed, the union makes money as does Starseed, but is this in your interest?
WeedMD has lots of cannabis flower that is not worth a lot of money at the moment. It can’t really sell it for more than 3 bucks a gram because there is a surplus of cannabis on the market. But if you subscribe to cannabis through Starseed it looks like Liuna and your employer is buying that cannabis at a premium price that Weed MD can’t get otherwise and so everyone is making money off of your cannabis prescription, but you are not getting the cannabis you might benefit from the most.
Other LPs sell capsules, edibles, and vape cartridges that are much more helpful to those dealing with pain and sleep issues. Liuna will reimburse you if you get a prescription and purchase from another LP, but they are not telling you that you can do that because they make money if you buy your cannabis from Starseed and buy the WeedMD product at a premium price.
So what you need to know is that you must explore your options and not just order through Starseed because it is easy. Did you know that every union member that signs up another union member gets a $50 kickback from Starseed? This is a system that is rewarding people for your cannabis dollars but we can’t be sure you are getting the best deal.
Liuna, Starseed and WeedMD are making lots of money off of your medical cannabis, but are you getting what is best for you and your family. Call us and get a second opinion.
Contact Millars Lawyers When You Can’t Afford to Lose.
(519) 657-1LAW or info@ml-dev.thirdeyeinsights.ca
By: Phillip Millar
