Canntab Therapeutics Ltd (CSE:PILL, OTCQB:CTABF) has announced a historic strategic planning collaboration and commercial partnership to create an Indigenous opiate and illicit drug crisis plan led by First Nations community leader chief Adam Pawis of the Shawanaga First Nation.
The plan includes Canntab providing direct online access through a First Nations-specific web portal designed to service Indigenous communities and their members nationwide, both on and off First Nations territories, in partnership with First Nations Grower GP Inc.
"Canntab is to be commended in our shared efforts to address and provide better health solutions for indigenous peoples," Dawn Tabobondung, CEO of First Nations Growers, said in a statement.
"I am especially proud that our shared plan includes ensuring that healthy alternative solutions and products approved by Health Canada, under the Canntab corporate umbrella, will 'specifically' reach both Ontario and Canada's most northern and remote First Nation communities through Canntab's easy accessible, indigenous specific, online web portal."
The goal in entering into this partnership is to provide health and wellness solutions to over 100,000 patients, helping to mitigate opiate use and abuse and other medical issues utilizing Canntab's products, the company said.
The Canntab web portal will provide First Nations-Inuit and Indigenous Peoples with customized access to Canntab's offering of patented and proprietary pharmaceutical-grade cannabidiol and tetrahydrocannabinol in solid dose pills and caplets.
The Toronto-based company’s alternative solutions will be made available online to service the most remote First Nations communities and its members regardless of location.
In his leadership role, chief Pawis aims to eradicate opiate and illicit drug use in his and other communities throughout the First Nations through the creation of the plan, a culturally sensitive strategic community plan developed in collaboration with Canntab.
“The current opiate and illicit drugs epidemic is an extremely trying crisis for many of our community members and their extended families, including our community elders and grandparents, as they are called upon to provide essential and important additional family care and support in the twilight of their own lives. We need to do more to address this crisis, which continues to cause more deaths than the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic,” said chief Pawis.
He added: “In collaboration with Canntab, our goal is to ensure every First Nation-Inuit, and the Indigenous person across Canada has immediate ease of access to Canntab's healthy alternative medicinal solutions to opiate and illicit drugs, regardless of community remoteness or geographical location.”
Canntab CEO Larry Latowsky noted that he is pleased to provide easy online and direct access to First Nations and their members nationwide, both on and off the First Nations reserves/territories, and from within their own home communities, regardless of location through a web portal developed to specifically service Indigenous communities' health and wellness needs.
“Canntab is well-positioned to provide community members alternative treatments for pain management, sleep, alcohol and drug addictions and other overall general well-being solutions," added Latowsky.
Since 2017, First Nations have seen an increase in opioid-related poisonings and deaths, primarily due to the growing presence of fentanyl in the unregulated drug supply.
First Nations have a mortality rate approximately four times higher than the rest of the population in opioid-related poisonings. Off-reserve First Nation individuals and those aged 44 years and younger have been impacted even more.
The plan will make Canntab's full suite of oral tablet products, which include a comprehensive range of THC and CBD strengths, available to First Nations, Inuit and Indigenous communities and their members across Canada.
"Indigenous mental health issues and conditions that have been caused by elevated trauma relating to the now disclosed history of the 60's Scoop and Residential Schools can also be addressed," chief Pawis noted.
Latowsky said that the plan really is a game-changer, as not very often can an initiative be undertaken that benefits the general wellness of people, attacks an addiction crisis in a community and generates substantial positive revenues and profits for the shareholders.
The plan is being conducted through an agreement with First Nations Growers GP Inc. The agreement is for an initial one-year term, which is renewable, and provides for a cash fee of $30,000 for start-up costs and an issuance of 1,000,000 warrants upon the satisfaction of specified milestones and regulatory approval, which are exercisable into one common share of Canntab at a price of $0.80 per warrant for a period of 24 months.
Contact Ritika at ritika@proactiveinvestors.com