Medical

Signature Drive Will Try To Stop Medical Marijuana Crackdown

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 11, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Montana medical marijuana advocates are getting ready to start a signature-gathering effort to suspend a soon-to-be-enacted law restricting the industry — and they won’t need to collect as many names as they initially believed.

The Secretary of State’s office has determined that advocates need at least 31,238 signatures to block the Legislature’s medical marijuana overhaul bill from becoming law, reports Charles S. Johnson at the Billings Gazette. It could take up to 43,247 signatures, depending on which state House districts they use, but they won’t need to gather 73,010 signatures as some originally believed.

N.H. Senate Puts The Brakes On Medical Marijuana Bill

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 11, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: ReLegalize Indiana

The New Hampshire Senate has postponed action on a bill that would have legalized the medicinal use and possession of marijuana for people with debilitating or terminal illnesses.

The Senate voted on Wednesday to delay action on the bill, which would have legalized less than two ounces of cannabis for medical purposes, reports the Associated Press.

Sen. Ray White (R-Bedford) said the Senate does not plan to vote on the bill this year, leaving seriously ill patients in the state with no alternative except either suffering or breaking the law.

Maine Committee Votes To Expand Medical Pot Access, Privacy

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 11, 2011 Legislation, Medical, News

Graphic: Maine Medical Marijuana

Maine lawmakers on the Health and Human Services Committee on Tuesday unanimously endorsed a proposal to expand access to cannabis under the state’s medical marijuana program. A second bill that would have legalized and taxed pot was voted down 7-3 in committee, but observers say the issue promises to resurface in the future.

The first measure, LD 1296, would make registration with the state voluntary rather than mandatory for patients who wish to use marijuana with the support of their physician, reports Meg Haskell at Bangor Daily News. This measure is intended to protect the privacy of patients, according to Rep. Deborah Sanderson (R-Chelsea), who sponsored the bill.

According to Sanderson, some people will prefer to register in order to make sure they don’t run afoul of law enforcement agencies. But patients should not be forced to be listed in a state registry to seek lawful therapeutic medical treatment, she said.

ACLU To Feds: Don’t Prosecute Medical Marijuana Patients

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 10, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Liberty Herbal Incense

The American Civil Liberties Union on Tuesday called on U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder to make clear that the Department of Justice (DOJ) will not prioritize prosecution of people who comply with state medical marijuana laws, in keeping with previously stated DOJ policy.

In a letter sent late Monday, the ACLU expressed deep concern about recent letters from several U.S. Attorneys across the country, threatening federal prosecution of people who comply with state medical marijuana laws, even including state employees and state licensed providers of medical marijuana.

“Patients, providers and legislatures need clear guidance from DOJ so they can proceed in confidence that state law will be respected,” said Jay Rorty, director of the ACLU Criminal Law Reform Project and one of the authors of the ACLU’s letter. “Patients who suffer from serious medical conditions need safe and reliable access to their medicine without the fear of federal prosecution.”

Lawmaker To AG: Why Isn’t Medical Pot A States’ Rights Issue?

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 10, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Photo: KOMO News

Washington Attorney General Rob McKenna thinks fighting health care reform is a states’ rights issue — but he seems completely unwilling to defend the state’s medical marijuana law against the feds

When 15 Democratic lawmakers in the Washington Legislature on Monday asked state Attorney General Rob McKenna for his opinion on several cannabis-related issues, his non-response only proved that the long-winded AG is capable of blathering on meaninglessly for six pages without ever actually saying anything.

McKenna’s office released an informal opinion which, Chris Grygiel of the Seattle P.I. reports, “largely declined to answer the questions the legislators previous posed to him. Those centered around how the federal government, which does not recognize state medical cannabis laws, might react to changes in Washington’s rules.”

Effective, Smokeless Medical Cannabis Extracts Available

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 10, 2011 Medical, Products

Photo: CBD Science

The new Alta California line of tinctures includes high CBD (Healing), balanced CBD/THC (Tranquility), and high THC (Euphoria).

A California-based company has introduced three cannabis based medicinal extracts (CBMEs), also known as tinctures, derived from organic plant material. They offer patients a choice of low, medium or high euphoric component THC, balanced with the healing cannabinoid CBD.

According to CBD Science LLC, based in San Francisco, “These are the first CBME products on the market with certified potency and purity, scientifically calibrated and documented.”

Steep Hill Lab certifies the propylene glycol (“double alcohol”) CBMEs as Safe Cannabis™, free of pesticides and mold. The lab also documents potency through THC and CBD levels.

The CMBE products, branded Alta California, are so far available to patients with valid recommendations at the following nonprofit dispensaries: Medithrive in San Francisco; Crème De Canna in Santa Cruz; and Magnolia Wellness in Orangevale, California.

Maryland Removes Penalties For Medical Use Of Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 10, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Medical Marijuana Blog

Maryland on Tuesday removed criminal penalties for the medical use of marijuana when Gov. Martin O’Malley signed SB 308 as promised. The bill allows seriously ill patients to avoid prosecution when charged with marijuana possession, and also creates a commission to study medical marijuana laws and make recommendations on how Maryland can institute such a program.

This is the first time since 2003 that additional protections were considered, and it’s an important step toward protecting medical marijuana patients from arrest and ensuring they have safe access to their medicine, according to the Marijuana Policy Project (MPP).

Elderly Man Who Grew Pot For Cancer-Stricken Wife Is Jailed

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 9, 2011 Growing, Medical

Photo: WOIO

Gary Burton, 69, was sentenced to 60 days in jail because he grew marijuana for his cancer-stricken wife.

A 69-year-old Ohio man who grew marijuana to help his cancer-stricken wife was sentenced to jail on Friday morning.

Gary Burton was given 60 days behind bars for growing two cannabis plants in Chippewa Lake, Ohio, reports WOIO.

He will also serve 30 days’ house arrest and will be forced to undergo drug testing for two years.

Burton said he was growing the plants for medicinal purposes, to help ease his wife’s pain due to her breast cancer treatments.

WA Group To Legislature: Hands Off Medical Marijuana Patients!

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 9, 2011 Legislation, Medical

Graphic: Cannabis Defense Coalition

Washington state’s medical marijuana bill — that is, the small portions that were signed into law April 29 under Governor Christine Gregoire’s partial veto — represents a “tragic setback for Washington State medical cannabis patients and providers,” according to Seattle-based advocacy group the Cannabis Defense Coalition.

“With the partial veto, Governor Gregoire carved out a patchwork of legal language to deny the protections of our law to many qualifying patients and providers, as well as to outlaw grey-market dispensaries that have operated for nearly 15 years in Washington State,” the CDC wrote on its website. Washington’s voters approved medical marijuana back in 1998, but a licensed system of legal distribution has never been set up, nor have patients ever been given arrest protection.

Delaware Very Close To Legalizing Medical Marijuana

By Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ on May 6, 2011 Dispensaries, Legislation, Medical

Photo: THC Finder

We’re close, brothers and sisters. Very close.

The Delaware House on Thursday approved a bill legalizing medical marijuana in the state, and the Senate approved the original measure back in March. But the House added two changes that must now be approved by the Senate before the measure can become law.

The bill would allow people 18 and older with qualifying medical conditions to have up to six ounces of cannabis after getting a doctor’s written recommendation, reports the Associated Press.

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