Marijuana is decriminalized or legal in some form in multiple states. But, because it’s illegal on the federal level, states have had to build their own regulatory infrastructure. Without a centralized body to guide them, regulations in one state can look vastly different from those in another. For more on the scope of the issue, Short Wave host <a href="https://www.npr.org/people/1082526815/regina-g-barber"target="_blank" >Regina G. Barber</a> talks to independent science journalist <a href="https://undark.org/author/teresa-carr/"target="_blank" >Teresa Carr</a> and NPR pharmaceuticals correspondent <a href="https://www.npr.org/people/825275572/sydney-lupkin"target="_blank" >Sydney Lupkin</a>. Read more of Teresa’s reporting on <a href="https://undark.org/2025/07/16/cannabis-testing-reform/"target="_blank" >state marijuana testing</a>, and more of Sydney’s reporting on the ways <a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/03/24/nx-s1-5239985/marijuana-recreational-weed-safe-contaminants-california"target="_blank" >California is trying to make weed safer</a>. Interested in hearing more science behind consumer products? Email us your question at <a href="mailto:shortwave@npr.org"target="_blank" >shortwave@npr.org</a> – we may feature it on an upcoming episode! Listen to every episode of Short Wave sponsor-free and support our work at NPR by signing up for Short Wave+ at <a href="http://plus.npr.org/shortwave"target="_blank" >plus.npr.org/shortwave</a>. Learn more about sponsor message choices: <a href="https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices">podcastchoices.com/adchoices</a> <a href="https://www.npr.org/about-npr/179878450/privacy-policy">NPR Privacy Policy</a>

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