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Congress OKs Medical Marijuana Everywhere With DC Rules: Attorney

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 13, 2012 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

theskunk.org

If one prominent attorney is right about the legal ramifications of the District of Columbia’s marijuana law — specifically, that it was approved by the U.S. Congress — then it could be a game-changer nationwide.

D.C.’s medical marijuana law was the first time that the United States Congress had ever given its explicit assent to any state or local law that permits the medicinal use of marijuana — and, according to a California attorney who specializes in health care compliance, that is enormously significant under the Equal Protection clause of the U.S. Constitution.

In 2009, noting that it was “allowing” the voters of Washington, D.C., to vote on and implement that city’s Legalization of Marijuana for Medical Treatment law, Congress approved medicinal cannabis in the federal District of Columbia, over which it has all governmental power.

Clueless Anti-Drug Agencies Oppose Medical Marijuana In Ohio

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 13, 2012 Legislation, Medical

“Cannabis Addiction“

Surprise, surprise. Members of two local “drug-fighting” agencies in Ohio are going public with their opposition to two possible statewide ballot issues in November, either of which would legalize the use of medical marijuana for certain types of illnesses with a doctor’s authorization. Job security, anyone?

“We wanted to take early action to get our position out there,” said Brian Kress, chairman of the Alcohol, Drug Addiction & Mental Health Services Board of Tuscarawas and Carroll counties.

Joining Kress in opposing the use of medicinal cannabis is the Anti-Drug Coalition of Carroll County, reports Jon Baker of the Dover-New Philadelphia Times Reporter.

The Ohio Alternative Treatment Amendment, a medical marijuana ballot issue, was approved by the Ohio Ballot Board in October.

In January, Ohio Attorney General Mike DeWine certified the petition for the proposed Ohio Medical Cannabis Amendment to the Ohio Constitution.

Medical Marijuana Bill Introduced In West Virginia

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 13, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

The Weed Blog

Delegate Mike Manypenny, who said he’s convinced the Lord put marijuana in His grand scheme of creation to provide mankind with relief from chronic pain, has introduced a bill in the West Virginia House of Delegates which would allow the medicinal use of cannabis in the state.

According to Manypenny, the Bible itself proves that God intended that man use marijuana for medical reasons, and he thinks his fellow members in the House of Delegates realize this, reports Mannix Porterfield of the Beckley Register-Herald.

HB 4498, new bill Del. Manypenny introduced to the chamber on Friday, would allow the use of marijuana for medical reasons.

When some constituents asked him a few years ago to sponsor the bill, “I thought, ‘They’re crazy,’ ” said Manypenny, a Democrat from Taylor County.

Arizona Legislator Wants To Ban The Term ‘Medical Marijuana’

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 13, 2012 Legislation, Medical

Tucson Citizen

Arizona, this is your “leadership”: mental pygmy Rep. Bob Robson (R-Chandler) doesn’t believe in medical marijuana, so he wants to remove the term from all bills which contain it.

Arizona voters approved medical marijuana back in 2010. But there’s no such thing, insists GOP state Rep. Bob Robson, and he not only wants his fellow lawmakers to stop using that term; he wants it struck from all bills which reference it.

“We’re already tacitly committing this body to recognizing something that doesn’t really exist,” said Robson, a Republican member of the Arizona House of Representatives hailing from Chandler.

He’s urging that the term be struck from all bills that contain the words “medical marijuana.”

Why, exactly, does the term need to be summarily removed from the English language, pray tell?

Robson argues that because he personally has never seen any studies that prove marijuana has medical properties (although one feels safe in guessing Rep. Robson’s intellectual explorations have been, shall we say, rather limited), the term should never be used. (Granny Storm Crow [PDF], call home.)

Medical Marijuana Bills Introduced In Maryland

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 10, 2012 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Cannabis Fantastic

Two bills were introduced Friday in the Maryland House and Senate that would allow patients with certain qualifying conditions to use medical marijuana with doctors’ recommendations.

The bills, HB 1024 and HB 1148, are based on the recommendations of a study panel created by the Legislature in 2011 and were introduced in the state House by Del. Dan Morhaim. Senator Jamie Raskin is expected to sponsor similar legislation in the state Senate.

One version of the legislation, championed by state lawmakers on the work group, allows doctors to recommend medical marijuana to their patients who could then purchase it from licensed dispensaries, all of which would be overseen by an independent commission.

Medical Marijuana Profit Is Allowed Under California Law

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 9, 2012 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Chronic Fatigue

In a Recent Letter, the Originator of SB 420 Clarifies That Medical Cannabis Providers Can Make a Profit.

By Robert A. Raich

There is a widely held misperception that businesses in the California medical cannabis industry are prohibited from making a profit. In reality, no California law prohibits cannabis-related businesses from making a profit.

Opponents of medical cannabis, however, have done a masterful job of spreading disinformation since SB 420 was signed into law in 2003. That disinformation has become so prevalent that it is affecting safe access to medical cannabis by patients around the state and has prompted retired state Senator John Vasconcellos to release a letter [PDF] debunking the widely held misinterpretation that profit is not permitted for medical cannabis providers under California law.

Maryland Ponders Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 9, 2012 Legislation, Medical

Casey Prather/The Towerlight

Medical marijuana advocates continue to push for the legalization of cannabis for licensed patients in Maryland through a proposed bill, The Medical Marijuana Act, HB 15.

The bill could allow the medicinal use of cannabis in Maryland as early as September, reports Gabrielle LePore at the Towson University student newspaper, The Towerlight. State licensed growers would cultivate the marijuana if the bill is passed.

HB 15 is a step toward increasing the quality of life for those who could benefit from medical marijuana, according to Donna Cox, a professor in Towson U.’s department of health science.

Mississippi Senator Pushes To Legalize Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 9, 2012 Legislation, Medical

WLOX

Mississippi state Senator Deborah Dawkins: “I think most people want their doctors to help them make their own decisions”

Senator Deborah Dawkins of Pass Christian, Mississippi, for the fourth year in a row, is submitting another proposal to legalize medical marijuana in the Magnolia State.

According to the experts, when used for medicinal purposes, cannabis can be quite useful. And that’s why Senator Dawkins is working hard to legalize its medical use in Mississippi, reports Terrance Friday at WLOX.

“I think most people want their doctors to help them make their own decisions,” Dawkins said. “And to me, we’re taking something away from the patients and their physicians.”

A number of studies have shown that some attributes of the cannabis plant can help relieve pain, control nausea, and help with a long list of other ailments. As of now, 16 states and the District of Columbia have already legalized the medical use of marijuana for certain conditions.

Medical Cannabis Does Not Increase, May Decrease Teen Use

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 8, 2012 Legislation, Medical, News

State laws allowing for the legal use of medical marijuana by qualified patients do not increase teen marijuana use, and if anything decrease teen use or have no effect at all, according to data published online in the journal Annals of Epidemiology.

Investigators at McGill University in Montreal obtained state-level estimates of marijuana use from the US National Survey on Drug Use and Health for the years 2002 through 2009, reports Paul Armentano at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML). Researchers used difference-in-differences regression models to estimate the causal effect of medical marijuana laws on cannabis use, and simulations to account for measurement error.

“Difference-in-differences estimates suggested that passing MMLs [medical marijuana laws]decreased past-month use among adolescents … and had no discernible effect on the perceived riskiness of monthly use,” McGill University researchers Sam Harper, Erin C. Strumpf and Jay S. Kaufman reported. “[These] estimates suggest that reported adolescent marijuana use may actually decrease following the passing of medical marijuana laws [emphasis added].”

Washington Patient Group Worried About Medical Cannabis Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on February 8, 2012 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Cannabis Defense Coalition

Seattle-based medical marijuana patient advocacy group the Cannabis Defense Coalition (CDC) has expressed serious concerns about Senate Bill 6265, currently in the Washington state Legislature.

A internal email sent to CDC members on Tuesday, February 7, outlined the group’s five biggest concerns with SB 6265 thusly:

1. Giving too much for too little

“SB 6265 would legalize a limited number of medical cannabis access points in a limited number of jurisdictions, but it will come at great cost to the Washington State medical cannabis community,” CDC said. “Governor Gregoire — whose partial veto last year put an end to the ‘designated provider model’ under which most access points were operating — has set boundaries on any medical cannabis bill she is to sign, and SB 6265 represents what is acceptable to her.

“The bill would provide broad authority to local counties, cities and towns to regulate medical cannabis collective gardens and access points through zoning, taxation, licensing, health and safety requirements, etc.,” the email said. “This will allow pot-friendly jurisdictions like Seattle and Tacoma to license, tax and regulate the medical cannabis businesses which have sprouted up in their midst, and over which they have uncertain authority.”

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