With two weeks to go until recreational cannabis is legal in Canada, Ottawa-area pot firm Canopy Growth (TSX:WEED)(NYSE:CGC) is deepening its roots in the medicinal market through a new pilot project with the Ontario Long Term Care Association.
The Smiths Falls-based licensed cannabis producer announced Wednesday that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Spectrum Cannabis, will run a pilot with the OLTCA to study the effects of medical-use marijuana in long-term care facilities across Ontario.
The six-month pilot program will explore cannabis-based therapies as an alternative to other therapeutics for pain and cognitive function for residents in a select group of homes. OLTCA will design and implement the program with Canopy supplying the product.
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A release calls the pilot one of the first comprehensive studies of cannabis-based therapies in long-term care situations and says as many as 500 participants will take part in the program.
A spokesperson for the OLTCA said that while medical cannabis treatments are prescribed “as appropriate,” it remains an under-researched area. Canopy president and co-CEO Mark Zekulin added that the pilot project hopes to improve consistency for seniors’ quality of life in long-term care homes.
Shares of Canopy Growth were trading around $62 on the TSX Wednesday, an increase of roughly six per cent over the course of the day. The cannabis firm’s share price has nearly doubled since mid-August, but remained flat through September.
